Ascension
by augustus.charlemagne
Summary: A continuation of DBZ, but it disregards GT and Super (though some elements of each will come up in the story). The story starts with a mildly rewritten End of Z tournament and goes from there. I will hope to upload every Friday.
1. The Youngest Fighter

A young lavender haired man flew through the crisp mountain air. He hadn't been here in years, but, just as he had thought, the young warrior still knew the landscape here like the back of his hand from playing here many times as a child. He had many memories of that time, the perils of Majin Buu and the subsequent battles, as well as the peace that began soon after. lost in memories, the young man almost missed his destination, only noticing just after he passed it. The youth touched down on a cobblestone pathway that lead up to a windowed magenta door.

"Goten!" The half-saiyan yelled as he walked by a white picket fence that surrounded a garden. As the man reached the door he began knocking on it, continuing to shout, "Goten! Gohan!"

After a moment the door opened, "What do you want n…" Then the voice cut off as a middle aged black-haired woman opened the door, "Oh, Trunks! What a surprise! What brings you here?"

"Hey Chichi, it's been awhile," Began Trunks, "is Goten or Gohan around?"

"Yeah, it's only been what, five years?" she joked, causing a smirk to sneak itself onto Trunks' face. "Goten is out training with his father," The former martial artists began, "But Gohan is in his study working, I'll take you to him." Chichi finished as she turned, waving her hand for trunks to follow. The young saiyan followed his elder around the house to a second building in back, somewhat larger than the first.

"Wow, is this Gohan's house?" asked the warrior as a young black haired woman opened the door. "Hi, Videl!" called out Trunks as he jogged up to greet his old friend.

"Oh, hello Trunks," Videl replied with a bit of a start, "how have you been?"

"I've been busy," began Trunks, "My mom has been training me to take over Capsule Corp when she eventually retires." With the wave of a hand, Videl welcomed the two in. Trunks entered first, and he saw that half the walls were covered in bookshelves. "Seems like you guys have been busy too," The youth continued as he took his surroundings in, "what are you doing with all these books?"

"They're Gohan's of course," Videl exclaimed, "he's always got his nose in a book."

"Hey, did I hear my name?" Asked a voice from the next room. A couple seconds later a tall man with jet black hair walked into the room from the direction the voice came from. "Hey Trunks," Gohan exclaimed at seeing his old friend, "it's good to see you. It's been awhile."

Trunks smiled right back, "yeah it has," he replied, "What have you been up to all these years?"

Gohan smiled, sticking his arms out to the sides, "isn't it obvious?" he chuckled, "I've been doing a lot of learning theses last ten years." Putting his arms down he turned back to Trunks, "So, what brings you here today?"

"Oh, I was actually looking for Goten, but I wanted to see you too. Do you have any idea where he might be?" inquired the lavender haired saiyan.

"Sure," answered the older saiyan, "He's out training with my dad on the next mountain. They invited me to come out too, but I was busy. I might go see what their up to later, though."

Trunks smiled as he began to turn, "Awesome!" he exclaimed, "I wanted to see what he's been up to all these years." The young warrior started for the door, "It was nice to see you all again, see ya later!" Trunks heard their goodbyes behind him as he took to the sky, _Now... where do I sense some power levels? Oh, there!_ he thought to himself, using his Ki sense. The saiyan then took off towards one of the mountains.

A teenage saiyan stood, hands locked with a larger warrior. Both saiyans pushed, trying to overpower the other. Suddenly the older saiyan let go and fell onto his back, kicking up, landing his foot squarely in his opponent's jaw. The younger fighter flipped back with the kick, recovering on the ground behind him, then shot at his counterpart. His messy hair flowed in the wind as he began to spin, flying at his enemy as he twisted in the air. Just as he reached his ready opponent he stuck out his leg ready to land a kick with all the momentum he had built up. The older Warrior held out his arms in an "X" shape, prepared for the impact. The two collided with a loud thud that shook the ground in their immediate vicinity.

The older saiyan jumped back, "Good job, Goten, I see you've been working hard."

"Thanks, dad," came the reply as sweat dripped down Goten's face, "But were not finished yet."

"That's right," Goku continued with a grin, "let's see how you do when I turn up the power a bit." The experienced warrior flew at his opponent, throwing a hard right. Goten barely got his defense up in time, as the power of the attack shook his body and he had to struggle to not be thrown back. The younger saiyan returned with a feinted right, but his father saw right through the deception, and as the young warrior prepared his kick his father brought up one leg to block. "You're way to slow," Goku grinned as he grabbed the stopped leg with one hand. The powerful saiyan pulled his son closer and punched him is the stomach,

Goten landed in a heap some 30 feet away. "One of these days the shoe's gonna be on the other foot," he jokingly promised as he got up and dusted his green and white tee-shirt off. Goku just chuckled and rubbed his finger under his nose jokingly.

At that moment Trunks landed a few feet from the beaten warrior, "Hey Goten, having fun?" He joked as he took a step towards his friend.

"Very funny," retorted the young black haired saiyan, "Just wait until the tournament tomorrow, I'll show you just how strong I've become." Goten grinned as he finished his reply.

Trunks looked at him quizzically, "Tournament? Oh, you're going to compete in the world martial arts tournament tomorrow?"

Goten continued to grin, "Yep," he happily replied as he put his hands on his hips, clenched into fists. "At first I didn't want to because I had a date that day," He continued, "but the more that I think about it what better way to show off to my girlfriend than to fight in the tournament. I invited her to watch me fight tomorrow."

The two young saiyans continued to catch up, when a noise was heard behind them. The three warriors turned to see an airship land close by in the clearing behind them. The side door to the yellow vehicle opened and two figures emerged from within. One was a short muscular man with black spiked hair and the other was a taller middle-aged woman with blue hair. A smile instantly appeared on Goku's face, "Hey! Bulma, Vegeta, How have you been?" the messy haired saiyan waved.

The couple walked towards their friend, Bulma replied, "We are doing fine, not that you would know. You never call and you never come visit. If we didn't come to see you, we would probably never see you again," When she reached earth's hero she crossed her arms and scowled.

Goku smiled back at her, "Oh, don't say that, didn't we see each other not too long ago?" inquired earth's hero as he hovered towards the new arrivals.

Bulma put up her hand, extending all its digits, "Five years!" she exclaimed," it's been five years since we've last seen each other!"

Goku scratched his head, "What? No way!" he retorted, smiling all the while, "there's no way it's been that long."

"Really? How old is Trunks, then?" Bulma challenged. The blue-haired woman continued when goku failed to reply, "Exactly! Every time we get together with everyone you say you have to train!"

"Well, I do need to train," The taller saiyan countered, "you never know when a new threat could appear."

Just as Bulma was about to reply, her husband cut in, earning a glare from the older woman, "By the way, Kakarot, is it true that you plan on entering the tournament tomorrow?" he asked his long time rival.

"Yep!" Goku replied as he grinned gaily, "you just can't beat those stadium hot dogs!"

"Hot dogs?" the spiky haired saiyan responded quizzically, "Kakarot, what is the real reason you are entering?" he finished sternly.

"Ok," relented the earth-raised warrior, "There is this one guy who is going to sign up, and I think he may be really good. We may even have a challenge," He finished hopefully.

"What, really?" Vegeta responded, "I don't believe it, I would have sensed his power if that were true."

"Well, I guess we'll see…" finished Goku hopefully, "By the way, how has your training been going?"

"Why?" smirked the prince of saiyans, "do you want me to give away any surprises I might have in store for you tomorrow?"

"That means you're entering!?" Exclaimed the taller warrior, "Alright!" Goku grinned widely, imagining what tomorrow might hold.

"Another thing, Kakarot," Vegeta continued, changing the subject, " How has the training of your sons been going?"

Goku began with a grin, "Actually, pretty good, Goten here trains hard when he's not busy with school or girls, I've even gotten Gohan out here a few times, but the one I'm really proud of is.." He was interrupted by the sound of flight in the distance. The sound rapidly grew until a small black-haired girl landed on the ground behind them, "...Pan! She trains harder than even me!"

"Grandpa!" squealed the four-year-old happily, "I just flew around the world again. Good, huh?" She ran up to the group and hugged her grandfather's leg.

"That's awesome, Pan!" Exclaimed the old fighter, "I think that was your fastest time yet!"

"Do you think I'll be ready for tomorrow, Grandpa?" The eager child asked expectantly.

"Wait, hold on a minute," Trunks interjected, "Pan's not going to compete is she? That's crazy, she's so young and I heard there won't be a children's division this year."

Goku put his hands on the child's shoulders, "Don't you worry about little Pan, she works hard and gives it her all. She'll be fine. She might not win the championship, but she'll give anyone a run for their money," Goku assured them.

After a moment Vegeta added, "I think Pan's got the right idea, I can't wait to see how she does. Guess what," the saiyan continued with a smirk, "Trunks is entering too."

Trunks smiled back, "That's okay, dad, I had already decided to enter when I heard Goten was going to."

Hearing this, Goten grinned, "Alright! Trunks is gonna enter! This is gonna be awesome!"

* * *

The next morning the Z-fighters gathered to sign-up for the tournament. Together they walked up to the booth. There was a small line of people signing up for the tournament. As the line moved forward goku studied the group of fighters in front of them. The standard martial artists, he surmised, strong, but not as good as the fighters he had fought when he was young. He sighed, The world tournament sure had lost a lot of it's strong fighters since he fought with piccolo all those years ago.

They were second in line now, as much as a group their size can be called second, with only a small child in front of them. Vegeta studied the child. He was young, though obviously much older than Pan. maybe around 10, he had brown skin, a tall black mohawk, and wore a brown cloth over his shoulder with white pants. Feeling for his ki, the saiyan prince was interested to notice he has a large ki for an adult human, let alone for a child his age.

"Next!" Called the official. As the group approached the man continued, " I assume everyone in this group is not competing, so just have the contestants come forward."

"Ok, I'll go first," Goku quickly spoke up, he stepped forward and filled out the paperwork quickly. Next Vegeta Stepped up, then Trunks and Goten.

"Anyone else?" asked the official, when Pan stepped man looked at her for a moment then burst out with laughter. "Thanks, kid, I've had a long day and I needed that."

"But I wanna fight!" Pan cried out.

"Calm down, Pan, I'll talk to the man for you," Goku reassured his granddaughter. The messy haired saiyan approached the official and persuaded him to allow Pan to fight. After Pan filled out the paperwork, with the help of her mother, goku turned to her, "See, nothing to worry about!" He smiled at her as she shot into his arms, embracing him with a huge grin of her own.

"Anyone else?" The official asked again.

"I would like to enter," everyone turned as a short, medium-length haired man stepped forward, "I mean, why not?"

Goku's grin widened, "Really, Krillin?!" the saiyan exclaimed, "It's gonna be like old times."

"Yeah," the human fighter continued, "I've been doing a bit of training with 18 lately in preparation for this tournament." As if on cue, the blond android stepped forward to sign up herself.

"It would be a shame if a runner up from a previous tournament did not participate," She explained, "besides, I could win another large sum of money."

When the couple had finished with their sign up, Pan tugged at her father's pant leg, "Come on, daddy, you promised."

"Alright , alright," Gohan replied as pan nearly ripped his pant leg. The tall saiyan stepped forward, "I'm going to sign up as well, I told Pan I would," he announced. He walked up and began signing his papers.

"Well, if Krillin is entering, then I have no excuse not to myself," A gruff voice stated as Piccolo walked to stand behind Gohan, a smile on his face.

"Wow," exclaimed Goku, "This is gonna be so awesome!" After all the paperwork was finished, the group moved on to the next order of business, food. They sat at a large table near a hamburger stand and ate. They all, save for piccolo, ate large portions, but none more so than the six saiyans. Pan ate just as much a her grandfather, astonishing everyone.

"How much time do we have before the tournament starts?" Goku asked his eldest son,

Gohan looked at his watch, "about an hour, why?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Pan and I are going to go have some fun," the older warrior told his son, "we'll be back in time for the tournament." He turned to his smiling granddaughter, "ready?"

"Ready!" beamed back the little girl, and the two dashed off towards the carnival style booths.

Chichi watched as they disappeared, "that Goku will never grow up, will he?" she asked rhetorically, affectionately shaking her head slightly.

The two played at basketball, darts, and Hammer booths. Then they went to get ice cream. Pan got five scoops of assorted flavors, when a young boy ran into her, knocking her ice cream to the ground. "You killed my cone!" the young girl yelled at her accidental assailant. The brown-haired boy staggered back as an unseen force radiated around the tiny fighter.

On the other side of the crowd Krillin turned his head suddenly, "Who is that?" he asked as he felt a power rise nearby.

"That's Pan!" Gohan said with a start, "but, what's happening?" Suddenly the power shrank down to almost nothing.

"Phew," The old monk sighed in relief, "glad that's over, but what power! She was stronger than the ginyu force, and it was still rising! What a powerful little tike!"

Goku wiped the sweat from his brow. Having given his ice cream cone to Pan, he had averted what could have been a bit of a crisis. "Pan, you need to have more restraint," he scolded, "you can't start lashing out every time something bad happens."

"Ok" the three-year-old replied begrudgingly, a tear in her eye.

The older warrior's face softened, "Are you ok?" he asked as he put the tiny red-gi girl on his shoulder. Pan nodded her head and smiled back at him.

Later the group met outside the preliminary round entrance. "Okay, you guys go get seats before the whole stadium is filled," Krillin urged those not entering the tournament.

"Okay, dad," Replied Marron, "you and mom fight your hardest!" 18 smiled and Krillin held up his fist in affirmation. The group split, one group heading towards the spectator section, and the other heading into preliminary round building.

"Here we go!" Exclaimed the old monk as the group entered.

* * *

This is the first chapter of a story I hope to continue for a long time. I hope you all like it. Feel free to leave a review. I will try to upload once a week on Friday.


	2. The Reincarnated Majin

The group of Z fighters marched into the preliminary round building to see over a hundred other fighters all vying for a chance to fight out on the main arena. "Now," began the announcer, the same man who had narrated the previous tournaments, "the preliminaries will go as follows, every one of the 128 fighters here will be put into one of 16 blocks, with the winner of each block advancing to fight in the main tournament in front of all the adoring fan!" The was a cheer from the group of fighters at that. "Well," continued the announcer, "with the large number of participants this year I expect many awesome fights. Now, if you all would come get a number so we can set up the blocks and start this tournament!"

As the balding man finished, fighters began stepping forward to get their positions in the tournament. "I'm in block 8," Goku announced, "what about you guys?"

"Block 15," replied the saiyan's eldest son as he reached for his glasses out of habit, which were not there as he took them off before the tournament.

"Block 4," Goten continued, smiling widely, "What about you, Trunks?" the half-saiyan finished, turning to his childhood friend.

"I got block 7" the lavender-haired warrior replied.

"I'm in block 2," Krillin excitedly put in, "looks like I may have lucked out, not being put in the same block as any of you."

"Block 9," 18 said with the usual disinterested look on her face.

"I was put in block 1," interjected Vegeta, "good, I can get this over with quickly."

"I got number 3," squealed Pan, jumping up until she was eye level with her father.

As the group continued to walk through the large mob of fighters, Krillin made a discovery, "Hey! I'd recognize the bald back of that head anywhere, Tien!"

The Tri-clops turned to see many of his friends gathered, "Hey, guys, what are you doing here?" he asked as chiaotzu hovered beside him.

"Oh, we just came to test ourselves against the world's greatest fighters, like always," The midget warrior joked, "what about you?"

"We came out of curiosity to see how the event had changed since we were here last," The bald warrior explained, "and I guess a bit out of nostalgia." he added as he looked around.

"Yeah," Goku spoke up, " it's too bad Piccolo destroyed the island all those years ago, they changed a lot when they rebuilt everything."

The large green warrior scowled a little at the memory, _A different time, to be sure_ the namekian thought to himself.

"What blocks are you guys in?" Gohan asked the pair.

"I'm in block 5," Tien answered straightforwardly, "and Chiaotzu is in block 15." Everyone stared at Chiaotzu, "What?" Tien inquired, "do one of you have that block too?"

"Isn't that the one…" Trunks trailed off as he turned towards Gohan, who had a bit of a solemn look on his face, "yeah, I thought so."

"It's ok," the floating midget assured, "with how many of us there are, it's amazing more of us weren't in the same blocks. I'll still try my best," the black capped warrior raised his fist towards Gohan, who nodded in agreement.

"Ok!" The group heard from the podium, "It's time we get started, will all the contestants from block one come forward to begin the matches." Vegeta walked wordlessly towards the ring in the center of the room as the announcer continued, "Now remember, the rules of the tournament are as follows. First, when the match starts both fighters will fight one on one until one fighter loses. You lose by touching the ground outside the ring, being unconscious for a count of 10, or giving up. There are no weapons, and you will be disqualified if you use them. Groin and eye shots are forbidden. Finally, under no circumstances are you allowed to kill your opponent. Now, if I can get fighters one and two of the first block to come to the ring, we can begin the preliminaries!" The aged announcer finished his monologue by raising his free hand in exclamation.

The fights of the first block were altogether unremarkable, with a certain spiky haired saiyan easily defeating his opponents and securing a spot for himself in the main tournament. "... and Vegeta wins his final match, moving on to the main tournament!" the victorious warrior marched back to the general vicinity of the other z-fighters.

"Good job, Vegeta" his rival exclaimed happily, raising his right hand in a congratulatory gesture.

The prince of saiyans turned his head away, "Wasn't even a fight," he said with his signature scowl.

"Now…" the group heard the announcer from across the room, "If I could get the fighters of block two to come forward, we will start the next phase of the preliminaries!"

"That's my cue, wish me luck!" Krillin joked as he ran towards the ring, After several matches the short martial artist also advanced to the finals. The next group included Pan and, to everyone's amazement, the 4-year-old easily dispatched her opponents as well. Then came Goten's first match in block 4.

"Here we go," the teenage warrior stepped into the ring, His opponent was young man, possibly 25 or so, and was a bit taller than Goten was.

"That guy look kinda familiar," the saiyan's father scratched his head, trying to remember.

"And, fight!" called the announcer, beginning the fight. The dark-complexioned fighter took a fighting stance.

"I will make my grandfather proud!" yelled the messy-haired young man. The human charged, much faster than most people in the room could follow. Goten smirked, easily evading his much slower opponent, though surprised at the power of said opponent.

"He's pretty strong," Observed Piccolo, "He could certainly beat Hercule in his prime, though not exactly easily." Goten continued to dodge effortlessly, angering the other fighter.

"Stop playing now!" the adult martial artist yelled at the saiyan, "I will not stand for this!" Suddenly, the fighter began moving his arms so fast, he seemed to have eight of them, "Try to play with this!" he charged, his attacks picking up speed. This was to no avail however, as Goten continued to dodge every attack.

"Oh, I remember now!" Goku exclaimed as everyone turned to him, "he looks and fights like he must be related to King Chappa!"

"Now that you mention it, he does share a resemblance," Krillin agreed, "Ha! I remember when a fact like that would have worried me, but Goten's got this in the bag."

As if on cue Goten backed away from his opponent, "you want me to stop playing? fine," he warned, then disappeared. The human fighter looked around trying to find him, just to be karate-chopped in the back of the neck, knocking the impressive fighter out.

"The winner is Goten!" The announcer called after a count of 10. Goten left the ring with a big grin on his face, as his opponent was removed by medical staff. Goten went on to defeat every other opponent in a similar way, though they were not as impressive as his first.

"Will the participants of block 5 step forward for their preliminary fights!" called the announcer as Goten marched back to the group of Z-fighters as a finalist.

Tien smiled, "Well, it's my turn now," the triclops said as he walked up to the group of preliminary fighters. When he was out of earshot he said under his breath, "man, this is nostalgic." Tien easily defeated all his opponents, advancing to the final rounds. Afterwards the fighters watched the sixth block, none of them we in it, as a very large man with a long braid became the finalist.

"Block 7 fighters, please come forward!" called the blond announcer. Trunks confidently walked forward, rotating his arm at the shoulder in a warm-up gesture. He easily became a finalist.

"My turn!" Goku exclaimed as his block was called up. Goku easily defeated his first opponent. Then, he walked into the ring with his second opponent, a tall, tan colored man with a turban and a thick black beard. "Wait, Nam?" Goku asked, recognizing the fighter.

"What?" The puzzled martial artist responded instantly, "yes, and you're...Goku!" He finally remembered. "It's been so long!"

"Yeah it has!" Goku agreed, "how have you bee…"

"Um, guys," the announcer interrupted, "sorry to interrupt, but you guys are holding up the tournament. Can we get to the fight?"

"Yes," Nam smiled, "I want to test myself against you Goku! I know I can go all out from the start!" Nam charged.

"Ok," Goku stood motionless as Nam approached, then easily dodged his repeated strikes. "Wow, you sure have gotten stronger!" Goku exclaimed, "You're way stronger than I was when we first fought"

Nam paused, panting, "Why, then, can I not hit you?" the older warrior asked, crouching for his next attack.

"Well, I've grown stronger too!" The messy haired saiyan charged, far faster than his opponent could see, and lightly punched him in the gut. The aged warrior doubled over and was sent flying outside the ring, landing in a heap on the ground.

As the announcer declared Goku the winner, Nam sat up. Holding his gut, he smiled, "Wow, you really are on a whole other level," the turbaned fighter replied. Goku walked over to the old friend and helped him up, and they both walked over to the group of Z-fighters. With a mix of catching up with Nam and fighting another round, the saiyan warrior advanced to the finals.

18 easily advanced through her block, entering the finals as well. Block 10 was won by a young man with long brown hair and an orange bandanna named Nok. While the eleventh block was underway, Goku got a tap on the shoulder, "Excuse me," and deep voice came from above the saiyan as he turned to see a giant man behind him, "are you Goku?"

"Yes, I am" Goku looked up at the man's face, trying to remember who this was. He was tall with lightly tanned skin, very muscular, and had blue markings on his cheeks. "But, who are you?" Goku asked, puzzled.

"Oh, yes, you must not recognize me," Began the large stranger, "it's me, Upa!"

Goku almost fell over, "Upa! Your huge!" The saiyan exclaimed, " and it looks like you've been training."

A smile spread over the huge warrior's face, "Yes, I have, and I finally climbed Korin tower like I always said I would!"

"Really!?" Goku yelled excitedly, "That awesome! I am so happy for you!" After calming for a moment, Goku became a bit puzzled, "But why didn't Korin tell me?" the tall man wondered aloud.

"Oh, I asked him to keep it a secret, I wanted to surprise you." The large fighter explained, "I want a match with you, though I have seen you are much stronger than I am."

The two old friends reminisced as the eleventh block came to an end, with a man wearing a chicken suit coming out as the victor.

"Will the fighters of the twelfth block come forward!" called the announcer over the crowd.

"That's me!" Upa grinned, walking towards the ring. The first match fighters stepped into the ring. One was a young adult man in a white gi, and the other was the child Goku had seen previously at the sign-up station. He was wearing a pair of white, loose fitting pants and a brown sash over his shoulder. When the match began, the first fighter charged the child, who just stood there. A solid kick to the stomach set the child skidding back several feet.

"What? how did he not fly out of the ring?" The adult warrior asked aloud, "well, no matter, this next attack will end this. This kid is too terrified to fight back." He was right, the dark tan-skinned child was terrified, his whole body shaking.

"Come on," Goku called encouragingly, "you can do it!" The kid's opponent charged, readying a right punch to the child's face. At the last second the boy ducked under the fist, and countered with his own to his opponent's ribs. The latter was sent flying out of the ring, creating a crack in the brick wall with his body. The boy looked at his fist, astounded at what had just transpired.

"And the winner is Uub!" The announcer called, "Can I get the next fight's participants in the ring!"

Vegeta turned to his rival, "Kakarot, why did you encourage that kid, you hadn't done anything like that for any other fighters, even for Pan."

"Oh, Pan doesn't need the help, but I do have a reason," Goku responded, "That boy is the reason I came."

"What?!" The spiky haired saiyan retort disbelievingly, "that child? Why, what so special about him? He does seem strong for a human, but what is so special about him?"

"Listen," Goku began, "when I was finishing Majin Buu all those years ago, I made a request. I asked that he come back as a good person, and King Yemma granted my request. That child is the result."

"Really? How can you be so sure?" Vegeta countered, still not believing.

"Look at his name, 'Uub' is Buu spelled backwards, if that doesn't prove it, I don't know what does." Goku replied with a shrug, "I guess we will have to see for ourselves."

Vegeta turned back to the fighting still not convinced. Upa easily beat his first two opponents, and Uub beat his second opponent with much more confidence than his first.

The two fighter stepped into the ring, "Good luck," Upa smiled at his opponent, "you may need it."

"Oh, I don't plan on losing now," The boy smiled, expecting this match to be the same as the others. He charged, faster than most fighters could follow, but his kick met Upa's crossed arms. Upa retaliated by grabbing his unexpecting opponent's leg and throwing him onto the ground of the ring, cracking a tile. The young fighter recovered and charged again, more carefully this time. He punched his much larger adversary's left leg, causing him to lose balance. Using the downward momentum, Upa hammered both fists down on Uub, who blocked with his arms crossed above his head.

"Oh, Wow!" Tien commented while the two fighters continued their relentless assault, "They are both almost as strong as I was when I first fought here!" Genuinely impressed, the experienced martial artist noted mentally that while one fighter had a slight edge in power, the other had greater technique. The blows continued, neither fighter giving ground. Uub pushed off the ground with his hands, kicking the opponent's chin, but Upa stopped his fall and grabbed his enemy around the waist. Preparing to throw the mohawked fighter outside the ring, he lifted the child up. Uub used the position to slam his heels down on the giant fighter's head. The struck warrior dropped his opponent and the latter took advantage of the opportunity. He jumped off the ground and slammed into the dazed warrior's stomach with both fists out in front of him.

The fight became a grind, Uub's successful attacks slowly damaging his opponent, but Upa was able to block and counter most the attacks. Both broke combat, breathing heavily. _Here's where it ends_ Goku thought to himself. The larger warrior charged once again, pulling back both his arms,then slamming them forcefully into Uub's. It became a test of strength, and Uub's exhaustion and lack of discipline showed. Upa began pushing the smaller fighter back. Step by step, Uub drew closer to the edge of the ring.

Feeling the corner of the ring under his heel, Uub began to lose hope of victory, _I may be the strongest in my village by far, but obviously there are stronger people in the world. I can't win._ He began to slip back the last few inches. "No!" he exclaimed suddenly, " I can't let my village down! They are counting on me! I can't let them down!" He screamed. Digging into reserves he didn't know he had, he began to push is overwhelmingly large opponent backwards. Faster and faster he pushed Upa back while the latter tried to break contact, but Uub held fast. By the time they reached the other side of the ring Uub was at a run and, still holding on, he jumped off the edge of the ring, landing on top of Upa as the latter hit the ground.

"His power just doubled for a moment there!" Krillin stared, wide-eyed.

"The winner of block 12 is Uub!" The announcer called out, " and what a match that was!"

The thirteenth block was won by a blond haired fighter sporting a white collared shirt named Nareg. Then, the fourteenth block was called up, and a familiar pink fighter walked into the room. The group greeted Buu, who went on to easily win his place in the finals.

"Ok, we're almost done folks, can I get the fighters of block fifthteen to come forward!" announced the referee. Chiaotzu and Gohan moved towards the ring through the group of fighters who remained. Both z-warriors defeated their first two opponents, then faced each other in the final bout.

"I know you are much stronger than me," began the midget, " but power isn't everything!" the white-skinned warrior thrust both arms out in front of himself. Suddenly Gohan felt his stomach flip inside his body, causing him great pain. The taller warrior knelt down, clutching his stomach. Chiaotzu phased into view behind his opponent, kicking him in the back, Gohan did his best to resist the attack, but his focus was on his stomach. The saiyan stopped just short of the edge of the ring.

Then, persisting through the pain, Gohan turned and stood up, "You know, that technique has only a limited effect on opponents much stronger than you," the scholar explained, his brow still furrowed in concentration.

Suddenly, Chiaotzu's power shot up, then the short human disappeared from view. Pulling back both arms, he bent his fingers and pushed them into the pain-relieved Gohan's back, "Dodon Barrage!" Shouted the human martial artist, as all ten fingers shot rays point blank into the adult saiyan's back, burning through his clothes easily.

Gohan grimaced in pain, but he turned, much faster than his opponent could react, and grabbed the latter's arms. "Good try," Gohan grinned, "If I had been at your level, that might have worked, but that was little more than a sting to me." The tall saiyan threw his opponent to the ground outside the ring. Though Chiaotzu tried to recover mid-air, he lightly touched the ground before he could stop.

"Gohan is the winner!" Cried the familiar voice of the announcer, "Can I get the last block to come up to the ring." Piccolo and the remaining non-finalists stepped up, and the Namekian unsurprisingly passed to the finals.

"OK, now that we have our finalists, it's time to show them to our fans!" The middle-aged man led the way out of the building, and to the entrance of the stadium. He ran on ahead to the ring where other officials were waiting with a tournament bracket set up in front of them. "Ladies and gentlemen," began the announcer, "welcome to the world martial arts championship!" He was met with an enormous roar from the crowd. "Here are the finalists that have passed the preliminary rounds!" he continued with a hand gesture in the fighter's direction as they walked up.

"Hey, Goten," Trunks said, elbowing his friend, "who was it that won last time we fought here?"

"That was last time." Retorted Goten with a smirk, " This time will be different."

"Here they are," the announcer continued, "The greatest fighters in the world! Each one is vying for the right to face Mister Satan in the championship match. Who will it be? Now it's time for the fighters to draw lots to determine their position in the tournament bracket! Can Wild Tiger come forward!" The announcer finished, pausing as the very large human stepped forward and drew a two.

Goku nudged Majin Buu, "Hey, Buu, can I ask you a favor? I want you to change the lot numbers so I can fight a certain person in the first round."

As the bandanna wearing Nok drew a four, Buu responded, "Sure, OK. Buu do!"

"It's not like you to break the rules, Kakarot," Vegeta stated, his arms crossed in familiar fashion.

"I know," the messy haired saiyan replied, "but I want to fight him in the first match, that way were both at one hundred percent.

"five" The announcer called out, "Captain Chicken pulled a five."

As the blond human nareg stepped up to pull a 12, Buu turned to Goku, "Is it time for Buu to use magic now?"

"Not yet," replied Goku, "there are still plenty of slots left, I'll let you know when."

Pan was called forward next, "I got a one!" She exclaimed, "I'm number 1!"

"Krillin!" The announcer called as the short human stepped forward, drawing a 3. Tien pulled a seven, and then 18 pulled an eight.

Then Uub was called up, "Ok now, Buu" Goku notified the Majin, "make this guy's number a 16." Buu made it so. Then Piccolo stepped up, "Make his a ten," Goku instructed. Goten went to get his, Buu causing him to pull a 14.

"Goku" The announcer called out.

"Ok, Buu, Make mine a 15." Goku asked his friend. After he pulled the lot, he returned to the Pink monster's side, "Thanks, Buu. I don't care what the rest are." Buu nodded in understanding.

After all the lots were pulled, the announcer turned to the crowd, "OK, we have all the preparations done! We can finally start the tournament!" He was met with huge applause. "The first rounds are," continued the man when the crowd had died down, "Pan vs. Wild Tiger, Krillin vs. Nok, Captain Chicken vs. Gohan, Tien vs. 18, Trunks vs. Piccolo, Vegeta vs. Nareg, Buu vs. Goten, and finally Goku vs. Uub. Now, let begin the World's Martial Arts Tournament!"

* * *

Thank you for reading my second chapter! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter and I liked the call back to older Dragonball characters, especially Upa who I always felt was never revisited when he should have been. Feel free to review.

R: This is absolutely amazing! I have never read Dragon Ball Z writing that I liked, other than the original. I love how you write the canon characters. This is really cool to read because I feel like the real characters are here on a new adventure. Fantastic writing!

A: Thank you! I hope to live up to your expectations and create a story you can enjoy!

R: This has a lot of potential. It is still early, but I hope it gets all the love it deserves. You depict the characters as they should behave and have decent writing skills. I hope you will stay motivated and I will be awaiting further updates. Kudos~

A: Thank you! I hope to give this as much love as it deserves, improve my writing, and create an enjoyable story.


	3. Superhuman

Sixteen fighters stood before a large white tile structure, thousands of people in the stands around them, cheering them on. A shorter human wearing a black blazer and sunglasses stood in the ring, "Ok, ladies and gentlemen, we are making our last preparations before we can start the tournament. We ask that you remain patient while we do this. The tournament will begin momentarily."

Among the group of fighters stood two children. This gained the attention of the audience and the other fighters. A young long-haired warrior with a bandana approached the older of the two kids. "How did a shrimp like you pass the preliminaries, Hmm?" he asked, getting in the mohawked warrior's face.

The young martial artist stood his ground, "I won because I was stronger than my opponents!" He declared, half to himself, _I still can't believe I did so well,_ he added to himself, _Only my last opponent was a challenge, but I have a feeling it's only gonna get harder from here._ The tan human glanced around at his powerful and confident looking opponents somewhat nervously.

"Well, you sure talk big," retorted the brown haired finalist with a grin, "but we'll just see if you can back it up." The pair heard a high-pitched humming coming from behind them, turning to see the only one there younger than Uub, the man added, "Well, compared to her, you're a giant." Nok walked off, shaking his head.

"Good luck!" Nok looked up to see Krillin holding out his hand.

"Yeah right!" The confident human slapped the extended hand of the shorter man, "Like I need it against you, old man!" The old monk just shrugged and walked off.

Little Pan practiced her backflips as she hummed a happy tune. The little 4-year-old picked up speed as she went, getting to impressive, though not superhuman, speeds. Not watching where she was going, she hit a wall of flesh. "Ow!" the young girl cried as she landed on the ground ungracefully. The girl looked up to see a large man with a black ponytail.

"Watch where you're going, kid!" He snapped as he turned to the youngster, "It's bad enough that I have to fight a little kid like you, but don't get on my nerves!" The hulking finalist then marched off to put some distance between him and his welled up in the little girl's eyes as she scurried off to be comforted by her father.

"OK!" cried the announcer "Can I get the competitors Pan and Wild Tiger to come into the ring!" The first to enter the ring was the hulking man, "Wild Tiger was the semi-finalist of last tournament, losing to Buu before the match with Mr. Satan himself, and today he continues his try for the championship!" Following the lightly tanned man, Pan contrasted her opponent's size starkly. "This is little Pan's first tournament, if that wasn't already obvious," began the announcer, causing a few chuckles, "She is four years old, and did surprisingly well during the preliminaries. She may be small, but as the champion's granddaughter she maybe give us a surprise."

"Huh, that's the champ's granddaughter?" the huge Wild Tiger pondered aloud, "It's still ridiculous that I have to fight such a small child."

The announcer threw his hand up into the air, "Let the match begin!" he called out.

"Fine," grumbled the humongous fighter, "if I have to fight her, so be it." He charged at the young girl. _I'll end it quickly,_ he thought as he approached his target. Pan stood motionless as her opponent approached. _She's so scared she can't even move,_ Wild Tiger thought as he neared, _This may be faster than I thought._ When the hulk was in striking range, he let fly a lightning fast kick.

Suddenly, Pan disappeared. After finishing his kick, the adult martial artist looked around trying to discover what happened to his opponent. He felt a tap on his leg, "Excuse me, mister, why were you walking so slowly?" asked the innocent little voice.

"What? I was attacking!" retorted Wild Tiger, nearly dumbfounded. What had happened? How had he missed?

"Woah!" cried the announcer, "Pan seems to have been able to dodge Wild Tiger's attack somehow!"

"Oh, you were attacking? I couldn't tell. Okay, my turn," Pan moved into a fighting stance.

"Yeah Right!" yelled out the giant warrior, lifting his foot to stomp on the little girl, but she disappeared again. Only the other superhuman fighters saw the young fighter jump into the air and lightly punch her opponent's face, sending him flying. WIld Tiger picked himself up across the ring from his small opponent. "Ow… what hit me?" he grumbled to himself as he rubbed his left cheek. The audience was dumbfounded, even the announcer didn't have anything to say. The large fighter growled, "Fine! No more mister nice guy!" He charged with all he had in him, pulling back his right fist for a powerful swing. Halfway to his opponent she disappeared once again, and WIld Tiger was met with an agonizing pain in his abdomen as he flew out of the ring, landing in a heap in the grass.

"Astounding!" exclaimed the official, "Pan won by ring out!" The entire audience gasped, well, all but those familiar with the Z-warriors.

"I'm number 1!" the happy little girl repeated as she skipped off the ring up to her father, beaming.

"Yes, you did amazing, Pan!" Gohan smiled wide, "I'm so proud of you!" He picked up his young daughter, embracing her tightly. He gave her a kiss on her forehead and she giggled in his arms.

"Wow, Pan, you did awesome!" The girl's grandfather exclaimed as he messed up her hair with his hand. She met his smile with her own.

"Okay!" the announcer interrupted the congratulating, "On to the next match! Can I get Krillin and Nok to come to the ring!" Krillin was the first one in the ring, "Krillin has entered the tournament several times, twice getting to the semi-finals! He is a very accomplished fighter!" The midget was followed by Nok, "Nok entered the last tournament, only to be defeated in the first round! But I am sure he has been training, so we are in for a show as experience and youth clash!"

"Yeah, right," Krillin mumbled under his breath, "this is gonna be about as entertaining as watching grass grow."

"Well, old man, I'll end this quickly!" called the bandanna-wearing human, "This is going to be easy!"

"Fight!" interrupted the official, and the taller fighter sprang into action. He charged Krillin, letting loose a flurry of jabs and kicks. Krillin easily dodged with his eyes closed.

Suddenly the old monk disappeared entirely. Looking around, Nok noticed his opponent several yards behind him. "How'd you do that?!" the brown haired warrior demanded, dumbfounded.

"Easy, you're just so slow," Krillin stated matter of factly, shrugging. The short warrior still had his eyes closed.

The monk's opponent furrowed his brow, "Don't you mock me!" He cried as he charged. This time his fist connected with his adversary's motionless body. "OW!" Nok almost squeaked as he pulled his throbbing fist from his opponent's cheek, "What happen? How did you do that?"

"You're weak as well," the seasoned fighter retorted, "you need more disciplined training."

Many mouths hung open in the audience as they watch Krillin slowly walk towards his opponent, who backed up in fear. "Woah!" began the announcer. "Krillin hasn't even thrown a punch, but he seems to be beating Nok!"

"No! There's no way you can be this strong!" the young martial artist began punching his enemy wildly, ignoring the pain said punches caused. His attacks steadily increased in speed and power as he fought with everything he had in him.

Krillin suddenly stopped walking and opened his eyes,"that's the spirit!" he exclaimed, "if you approach your training that way, you'll get stronger." Nok continued his fruitless assault as the black-haired human resumed his forward advance. The superhuman soon pushed his opponent to the end of the ring, who proceeded, in his assault, to slip off the edge of the ring and land outside on the grass.

"Krillin is the victor without even throwing a single attack! Astounding!" called the official.

Krillin walked off the ring, and held out his hand to his prone, and in shock, opponent. The taller human took the outstretched hand and got to his feet. "You did well," Krillin began, "but you need to focus your training more. Train like you just fought me, and you will see results. Oh, and a little respectfulness goes a long way."

"I'm... sorry," Nok began, "C-Could you train me? I...promise to be respectful and work hard."

The superhuman midget suddenly beamed, "are you kidding? I don't have that kind of time, I have a family now. My days of training are over. Besides, I am actually one of the weaker fighters here." Nok gasped, looking at the other fighters in the tournament, trying to identify the ones that could be stronger than this incredibly strong man.

Vegeta was examining the boy Goku claimed to be the reincarnated Majin Buu, "Kakarot, are you sure this boy is really that powerful?" the spiky haired saiyan posed his rival, "I mean, he is obviously powerful for a human, but he hardly even holds a candle to Pan."

"Yep!" The taller saiyan replied instantly, "There is no doubt in my mind that he is Buu, well the evil part of Buu we killed."

The saiyan prince turned his attention to the son of his greatest rival, "so, Gohan, how has your training been going."

"Well," The purple gi-wearing saiyan stammered, "I have been doing a little training…"

"Give him a break, Vegeta," Goku interjected, "he trains some, I would say he's even stronger than he was when he fought Majin Buu, and his technique has improved as well."

"Really?" Vegeta asked rhetorically, "well, Kakarot and I might actually have some trouble then."

"Don't forget Buu," the spiky haired saiyan's rival reminded him, "He won't be a cakewalk either."

"Oh, right, that pink bubblegum," Vegeta smirked, "I'm honestly not that worried about him. You are right, though, he's not weak." Majin Buu was looking at some cotton candy in the stands, his mouth watering. "But what he has in strength, he lacks in concentration and discipline," finished Vegeta.

"Can I get Gohan and Captain Chicken to the ring, Please!" the announcer's voice boomed throughout the arena." Captain Chicken ran to the ring, clucking like a chicken all the way, "This is Captain Chicken's first tournament, but he has made a reputation of himself stopping crime in East City!" After the feather clothed fighter took his position in the ring, Gohan dashed at superhuman speeds and seemed, to the audience, to simply appear in the ring. "And Gohan competed in one tournament years ago to.. mixed results," continued the official, "He is the son of previous champion Goku and he used to be the Great Saiyaman! This clash of hero versus former hero promises to be a good one!" The blond man raised his hand, "Fight!"

Captain Chicken charged, but stopped short of Gohan, pulling out a pen and paper, "I can't believe it, bok-bok, it's the actual Great Saiyaman!" He exclaimed, beaming, "You are the one who inspired me to be a superhero, bok!"

"Oh, uh…" Gohan stammered, "Thank you, I guess?" Gohan quickly signed the piece of paper, "But can we get back to the fight," he asked.

"Oh, o-of course!" The feather clad warrior composed himself, "I get to test myself, bok-bok, against my Idol." The muscular human took a fighting stance, "Prepare yourself!" He charged, landing a left fist on Gohan's right arm block. Gohan grabbed his opponent's outstretched arm and threw him across the ring, running to where the thrown fighter would land. Captain Chicken blocked the saiyan's strike as he fell, counterattacking with a foot to Gohan's neck. The tall saiyan absorbed the impact, planting both of his fists in his opponent's upside-down gut. The poultry powerhouse grunted, landing on his shoulder, then flipped into the air and landed on his feet.

"Why is Gohan holding back so much of his power?" A confused Goku posed, scratching the back of his head.

Piccolo scowled, "I'm not quite sure, it might be that Gohan is testing his technique, he may feel bad about being this man's idol and defeating him quickly and easily, or maybe he just wants to give the audience a good fight."

Gohan went on the offensive. His first two punches were blocked by his opponent, then his foot connected with his opponent's side. The avian fighter ignored the throbbing pain each of Gohan's attacks left, socking the latter's face and pushing him to the side a few feet. The Spiky haired saiyan grinned, spinning with the punch, he kicked out low, sweeping his adversary's feet out from underneath him. As the white-clothed warrior fell, the saiyan continued his spin, rounding again on his opponent and kicking him away. Captain Chicken skid across the ring, coming to a halt several yards away. The bird-like martial artist slowly got up.

"You're amazing, , and finally fighting you almost feels surreal!" the human martial artist beamed, "This fight has been a dream come true, bok-bok!"

"Good, you're not bad yourself," Gohan calmly replied, "This has been fun, but it's time to end it. You are a good fighter with potential, but you are far too early in your training to take on me. I have been holding back to test you, but it's time I move on." Suddenly the tall saiyan disappeared, then reappeared inches away from Captain Chicken. The shockwave from his opponent's incredibly quick approach sent the feathery warrior flying out of the ring and onto the grass border.

"Woah," began the announcer as the defeated fighter picked himself up, "I don't know about you folks, but I sure wasn't expecting that! Gohan wins by ring out!"

Gohan walked over to his beaten opponent, and outstretched his hand. The chicken man took it and the two men smiled at each other, each congratulating each other on a battle well fought. The adult saiyan walked back over to his friends.

"Good job, Gohan," Krillin pat the taller warrior on his back, "that was some battle." The midget gave the saiyan a knowing smile, and gohan returned it. They had both been idolized and looked up to by someone in the martial arts community today.

"That was an interesting battle, big bro," Goten put in, grinning, "I hope that wasn't your best, because you were terrible!" he teased. The older brother gave the younger a light punch on the shoulder.

"Moving right along, can I get Tien Shinhan and 18 to come up to the ring for the next match!" Began the referee. Almost simultaneously 18 and Tien flew into the ring, astounding the audience, and faced each other. "Tien was is a former champion from many years back and has repeatedly left his mark on this tournament, especially the ring! Tien was a student of the crane school in his youth, and is a master of many techniques. 18 is a runner-up from several tournaments ago, where she defeated all comers besides the Champ himself! If I may make a prediction, I would say this will be one explosive fight!"

"Oh, this is going to be easy," boasted 18, "I won't even have to try to beat you."

"Really?" retorted her opponent, "I wouldn't count me out just yet, I may have a trick or two up my sleeve."

"Fight!" announced the blond official, and a white aura appeared around Tien as he pulled out his power, then charged his opponent. 18 easily caught the triclops' fist and retaliated with her own fist in his abdomen. Faster than he could react she kicked him towards the stands. The bald martial artist stopped mid air, flying back towards his opponent, firing an energy blast which was easily caught and extinguished by the cyborg.

The smoke created by the blast distracted the blond long enough for Tien to get close and outstretch a forefinger, "Dodon Ray!" The small blast detonated on the cyborg's back, pushing her forward several inches. The blond reacted by elbowing the triclops across the ring, where he landed on his feet.

"Not bad," the powerful female walked slowly forward, "but I could end this fight at any time if I wanted to."

Tien took a defensive stance, "just try, then," he smirked. 18 suddenly disappeared instantly, flying towards her opponent. Anticipating her actions Tien sidestepped, and let her momentum almost took her out of the ring. "If you weren't so predictable, that definitely would have gotten me,"

"Maybe I should stop holding back, then?" 18 replied with a smile.

"That makes two of us," Tien shot back, causing 18 to lose her smile, "Kaioken!" a red aura enveloped the triclops as he charged.

"Kaio-what?" the dumbfounded 18 asked as her opponent moved much faster than she was expecting and kicked her up into the air.

* * *

Hello again! I enjoyed this chapter, but I think I will enjoy the next one even more! I have a bit of unfortunate news, though. I am going camping for a week, so I will not be posting next Friday, 6/21, but will post chapter 4 the following Friday, 6/28. Sorry for the delay. Feel free to leave a review and have a great day!

R: So far so good! Keep up the good work!

A: Thank you, I will!

R: I'm liking this so far, but i suppose that's because it's still mostly the same. I'm interested to see what you do when things really start changing.

A: things are a little different here, and will be different going forward. If you mean future arcs, then I hope I can make them believable and enjoyable!


	4. The Limits of Kaioken

The audience looked to the sky in awe as the two opponents of the fourth match of the World Martial Arts Tournament traded blows. The bald triclops, wreathed in crimson, pushed his offensive as his blond opponent easily dodged and side stepped his attacks. The triclops punched and kicked with all his speed and might, but his opponent was always two steps ahead of him.

"Wow, Tien is awesome," a tall messy haired saiyan observed, "He's stronger than Frieza ever was."

"Yes, unfortunately his opponent is many times stronger than Frieza," replied a shorter, spikey haired saiyan.

Tien continued in vain to hit his opponent, _This isn't good, she's just toying with me, I thought the five times kaioken would surprise her enough for me to get a couple hits on her._ The seasoned martial artist attempted to hammer his robotic opponent, but she disappeared before he made contact. Suddenly an elbow stabbed into his back, sending him flying to the ground. As soon as the pressure was off his back, Tien spun in mid air, recovering and landing on his feet. 18 landed on her feet, her black top not even ruffled from the combat.

"Woah!" commented the announcer, "looks like Tien may be in trouble, what can this previous champion do against his adversary?"

"You should just give up," advised the cyborg blankly, "You can't win with that level of power."

"Really?" grinned the three-eyed warrior, "then I guess I just have to take it up a notch or two." Tien brought his arms to his sides, curling them, "Kaioken times ten!" he yelled. The fighter's red glow deepened slightly. The warrior charged, but his opponent was ready. 18 caught his first fist, then his second. Tien's face turned serious, "Dodon Barrage!" all ten of the triclops' fingers, pointed at the cyborg through her own, fired a yellow beam that forced the blond to break her contact and dodge. Before the android could retaliate, Tien brought his now free hands to his face, "Solar Flare!" 18 couldn't react in time, as a blinding light stole the eyesight of nearly everyone in the stadium.

"Oh, wow," exclaimed the tournament official, "Tien used the the Solar Flare technique, one he has used before in this tournament years ago to some success."

18 floated motionless in the air, listening. With her eyesight stolen, she needed to try to sense her opponent some other way. Now she wished she had learned to sense ki, but it was too late for that. She heard some air movement behind her, but she reacted too late as both of Tien's feet slammed into the back of her head. She was sent flying, but was able to stopped her descent in midair. As her sight returned, however, she saw she was mere inches from the ground outside the ring. Thinking quickly she flew onto the ring before her opponent could force her down anymore.

"Not bad, but you'll have to better than that to beat me." said 18 as a slight smile crept it's way across her face, _This may actually be fun, he's not as weak as the other humans._ The cyborg took a fighting stance, then charged at an appreciable portion of her full speed, moving faster than the kaioken-powered triclops could react.

He turned to see the blond android strike him in the small of his back, forcing him to dig into the tile floor with his feet to keep from flying out of the ring. Ignoring the pain in his back, the triclops turned to the approaching form of 18 and quickly shot a beam of energy from his third eye. The android hesitated and dashed to the side to dodge the beam, then continued her approach of the triclops. Anticipating her movements, Tien pushed off the side of her fist and shot to a corner of the ring.

"Gotcha!" the cyborg declared as she dashed at the cornered fighter, readying a fist designed to send her opponent into the dirt.

Tien grit his teeth, "Here goes! Kaioken times twenty!" He yelled, His aura intensifying as he dodged the supposed finishing blow, kicking his opponent in the back and sending her into the air outside the ring. 18 Stopped her flight, shifting backwards towards her opponent. The cyborg spun with one leg outstretched, meeting the red warrior's cross armed block. The triclops was still sent flying across the ring, stopping his low arc by digging his arms and legs into the tile.

Tien picked himself up out of the fine-ground tile surrounding his hands and legs, his red aura still enveloping him. _This isn't good, I can't keep up with her even like this. I'll have to get creative._ The android slowly walked towards the triclops as he prepared himself for the renewed combat.

Piccolo smirked, "Tien's come quite a ways in the last ten years," turning to vegeta, the namek continued, "He's almost as strong as you were when you first fought 18."

"Yes, and we all know how well that went," retorted the scowling saiyan, "regardless, the kaioken drains energy faster than even an unmastered super saiyan transformation, so he has an even smaller chance of winning this battle."

The old warrior did all he could to keep his opponent on the defensive, but he could tell she was still not serious. 18 caught the triclops' wrists and jammed her feet into his midsection, letting go of his wrists just in time to keep them from dislocating. The shirtless martial artist flipped in the air and landed on his feet, his aura dissipating as he rubbed his sore wrists.

"What, giving up?" 18 smirked at her perceived victory.

"Not a chance, I have a few tricks up my sleeve yet," The muscular warrior assured, putting arms out perpendicular with his body. Grunting, Tien's arms bulged slightly as veins became visible all over the fighter's body. Muscle and bone grew from the taller warrior's shoulder blades, taking the shape of arms as they jutted out from his upper back and arced over his shoulders. Grinning through the effort Tien finally spoke, "four witches technique," then all four arms balled their hands into fists, "times twenty!" The familiar red aura ignited on the four-armed triclops as he charged his opponent

"Really, you're still not fast enough," 18 stated matter-of-factly, as she began dodging her opponent's furious assault. Tien's punches came like a machine gun, each punch faster and more precise than the last. The android found herself forced to block several of the punches, surprised at Tien's ability to coordinate all six limbs in his attack. The bald warrior finally got an attack through his adversary's guard, landing a knee into her gut. The blond paused, the air knocked out of her, as the larger warrior's extra arms slammed down on the back of her head. Tien spun, quickly built momentum and kicked his shorter opponent away. The crimson fighter then vanished, reappearing behind her prone figure. He somersaulted, slamming all four fists into the blond cyborg, sending her into the ground under the ring.

"Wow, that was brutal!" declared the referee, "I don't think anyone could get up after that!"

"18!" The blond's husband stood on the edge of ring, his eyes focused on where his beloved had disappeared. In the stands another blond, a young girl with pigtails, looked on for any sign of her mother.

"One!" Called the announcer as the dust began to settle, "Two!"

Tien relaxed, letting the red aura subside as he searched for any sign of his opponent, _There's no way that finished her off, and I can't even sense her energy, either._ As the announcer reached five, Tien realized he should float into the air to defend against a surprise attack, but it was too late.

18 shot out from under the tile just behind the tri-clops, landing a hard punch into the small of her opponent's back. Reacting quickly, Tien ignited his kaioken and did a somersault forward to regain control of his movement. The two paused, Tien huffing harder than he cared to admit. Without warning 18 charged and the two began to clash again, though Tien was noticeably more on the defensive than previously.

"I'm not sure how much more he can take," Goku wondered aloud, "Tien's tough, but a sustained Kaioken like that takes a lot out of you."

18's fist hit the bald fighter's crossed block. Her next punch was barely deflected by the martial artist. Increasing her speed, she successfully kneed him in the gut. Resisting the reaction of doubling over, Tien was pushed back several feet.

"Yahhhh!" called the warrior in exertion as he shot himself back at his cyborg opponent. Pushing his body to his limit of speed and strength, the tri-clops was able to keep his opponent on her toes for a moment. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Tien fired an energy wave from his third eye, hitting just below her neck, causing the blond to be pushed back several yards before regaining control of her footing.

Looking down to see her charred neckline, as well as all the other damage done to her clothes during this fight, 18 scowled at Tien. The seasoned martial artist prepared himself as she flew back at him. Going full force, 18 fairly easily bypassed the tall fighter's defences, landing a knee into his chest. Flung back towards the edge of the ring, it was all Tien could do to stop before leaving the ring. 18 appeared above the bruised martial artist, elbowing him into the ground.

"Gah!" gasped the prone warrior as his torso was forced into the cracking tile. Finishing with a stomp on his back for good measure, 18 looked down at her opponent sprawled on the ground.

"This is over," she taunted as she casually kicked the bald fighter over the edge of the ring. Tien regained control of his movement just inches from the tallest blades of grass, flying back onto the ring in a spin. He then launched himself toward his surprised opponent. 18 quickly responded with a charge of her own, the two fighters landing several heavy blows on the other's blocks. The Cyborg soon regained the advantage on the superhuman, slipping a left jab through his defences. The momentary hesitation caused by the blow gave 18 the opportunity to once again take control. She grabbed one the triclops' arms, turned, and threw him over her shoulder. Following his flight the female fighter kicked both feet into the kaioken-garbed warrior's stomach, launching him into the sky.

"18 has pushed her opponent into the sky!" The announcer called over the roar of the crowd, "this certainly meets the expectation of a match between a former champion and a former runner-up!"

_I've got to do it now,_ Tien thought while hovering in the air. "I don't think I can beat you like this," stated the warrior as he landed back onto the ring some way away from 18. He grunted while his extra arms retracted into his back.

"Are you giving up?" inquired the blond cyborg, smirking and putting her hands on her hips.

"Not a chance," the triclops retorted, "I'm not done yet. I have pushed myself my whole life to be as strong as I can be," began the panting warrior, "I've even done things I'm not proud of for the sake of that strength. Then the super saiyans," he continued, glancing at Goku, Vegeta, and Gohan, "came and I couldn't keep up. I pushed harder and harder, but Kaioken could only take me so far," the martial artists' panting slowed as he smiled, "so I surpassed it."

"What does he mean?," asked Goku from the sidelines to no one in particular, "How would you even surpass Kaioken, wouldn't it just be a higher level?"

"What was the highest level you ever got to, dad?" asked the saiyan warrior's younger son.

"I could never push it pass 20 times, even after I achieved super saiyan, so I left it because super saiyan was just so much stronger," explained the messy haired warrior, "I was able to couple kaioken with super saiyan once, but it was so draining that it wasn't worth it. I'm not sure what Tien has in mind."

18 looked mildly surprised, "what do you mean 'surpassed it'?" The cyborg took a step forward into a fighting stance, her arms at her sides and angled out at the elbow.

Tien, not answering, lowered his body. His legs were in a squatting position, and his arms were crossed in front of his body. "Kaioken!" yelled the bald fighter, reigniting his red aura. Then, after a moment of silence, he continued "Super Kaioken!" he cried. Suddenly the crimson aura expanded and began to change color. It slid on the color spectrum into violet, deepening as it pushed into a royal blue. "Ha!" Tien nearly screamed as the blue flames licked the air around him faster than before.

18 stood there, now very surprised and a little worried, _now I really wish I could sense energy_. Not giving her a moment to take in the sight and collect herself, Tien sprang into action. A punch to the gut caught the cyborg unawares and then she found herself uppercutted into the air. The triclops wasn't quite a blur, but he was definitely moving faster than she could. He flew around the female fighter's uncontrolled flight into the air, smashing his fist into her back and sending her crashing into the ring.

As quickly as she could, the artificial human scrambled to her feet and took a fighting stance, her eyes focused on the fighter wreathed in blue. This time she would know what to expect. Tien flew at her and the two fighters exchanged blows. 18 found that while she was definitely on the defensive, she wasn't being overwhelmed. _I just have to be careful and wait out his energy,_ thought the blond fighter as she hoped her infinite energy core would sustain her through the assault.

Through the parries and blocks,Tien shot a jab between the female fighter's arms into her stomach and she recoiled in pain. She backed up from her enemy, negating what advantage the momentary stun gave the bald martial artist. Tien's pursuit was relentless, however. Following, he ducked down and swept 18's feet out from under her. With a flip the triclops kicked the cyborg, sending her careening across the ring.

The blond android stopped herself in midair. Her striped sleeves were torn from Tien's furious barrage. "You can't keep this up forever," the cyborg warned as she hovered over the grass, "You will tire and I will win." She smirked as she noticed the former turtle student's panting, "you are already tired, just quit while you're ahead."

"Never!" cried Tien, "I will just have to finish this soon." _She's right though, I must finish this soon if I want to win, the Super Kaioken takes too much energy._ "Ha!" Yelled the warrior surrounded in blue, flying it to resume blows with his opponent.

"This is incredible," The Announcer called over the jubilation of the crowd, "the fire surrounding Tien appears to have increased in intensity to the point of becoming blue. This seems to be a technique of some sort, I just hope no one's clothes burn up!"

"Tien is awesome!" Goku exclaimed as the two fighters' attacks impacted all over the ring in sonic booms, "I would never have guessed this kind of thing was possible."

"His energy is much higher than before," Trunks commented, "He has a good chance of winning if he can finish this quickly and -"

"Very quickly," Vegeta cut in, "the Kaioken drains stamina quickly, isn't that right Kakarot? This super version must do so even more quickly. That kind of desperation might cause him to make a mistake."

"It's true that Kaioken drains energy," The earth-raised saiyan replied, "but the more used to it you get, the less energy is wasted, and Tien won't make a mistake, he's too good!" Smiling at the seasoned martial artist in the ring, "He'll win, you'll see!"

Tien and 18 collided in the center of the ring in a deadlock, each one's' arms locked with the other's. The blue aura of the Super Kaioken licking the air around the fighters. Tien twisted a kick aimed at the side of his opponent's head, who freed her right arm and raised it to block. Holding onto her other arm, the bald fighter threw as much weight as he could into a right cross at the artificial human's face. She flew backwards, landing with a thud on the tile floor.

18 got up, a furrow on her brow. The impact on her cheek bled moderately, and her cloths were beaten up and dirty from all the tile dust created from their battle. "Ok, that's enough," she said, partially to herself. She raised both arms out at her side, spirals of energy releasing from her hands. The energy collacerated into two discs hovering above her hands. "Destructo disc!" She called out. Immediately she threw them at her opponent.

"She's going to cut through the crowd!" Gohan called as he prepared to intercept them.

Krillin stepped in front of him, "It's fine," he explained, "she wouldn't do that if it would hurt anyone in the audience." He put his right hand behind his head, scratching it sheepishly, "We have been working on controlling their path better."

"Like Freiza's technique?" Inquired Goku.

"It is similar, but I think we got it down better," Smiled the midget.

Tien dodged to the side, watching as the disc changed directions to follow him. He flew up into the sky, leaving a blue trail in his wake. "Tien is going up into the sky again to escape 18's latest attack, two discs she created, but they appear to be chasing him up!" called the official. The Triclops dodged barely, the discs being just faster than him.

18 concentrated on the discs, maneuvering them around so as to make them move in on her adversary consecutively, trying to catch him with the second while he was focused on the first. She purposely didn't aim for vital areas, preferring non-lethal cuts instead. Tien barely dodged each time, seeing through each deception and preemptively moving accordingly to come out ahead.

18 relaxed slightly, _if this keeps up, I win. He will tire and I will be able to keep going,_ She thought as she continued to direct her discs and he opponent was kept on his toes.

Tien, on the other hand, knew his time was short. He analyzed the situation, trying to find a way to get away sufficiently to counter attack without 18 expecting it. Dodging and weaving between the attacks he created a plan. When the cyborg sent both discs flying at the experienced martial artist at the same time, he saw his chance. "Super Kaioken… level 2!" He called, His blue aura growing and the flames of energy quickening. Spinning between the attacks, he put an open palm on the flat side of each disc. Pushing his energy into them, he negated the energy sustaining the attacks and they shattered.

Tien shot at his opponent like a bullet. 18 had barely registered that her attacks had been destroyed when the bald warrior was on top of her. Planting his feet firmly on the ground, the martial artist pushed his hand into her waist, fingers cupped so they pointed into her stomach. "Dodon Barrage!" he called one more time. Five blasts collided with the female fighter, doubling her over and sending her flying. Just as she was ready to try to regain control of her movements, Tien reappeared in front of her, and hammer fisted her farther out, over the grass outside the ring. She was just stopping her flight when the Kaioken user appeared above her, and with one last powerful kick sent her crashing into the dirt.

"Tien is the winner by ringout! That was incredible!" The announcer called out, but even he was barely heard over the crowd. The crowd was going wild, roaring in joy at the amazing fight they had just witnessed.

"Humph" scowled the saiyan prince, "they haven't seen anything yet."

Tien landed softly on the ground next to Android 18, offering a hand. "That was the hardest fight I have fought in a long time," he panted, "If you hadn't let down your guard like that I wouldn't have been able to end it so quickly and would have tired."

18 grabbed the offered hand, recognizing the friendly gesture. "I thought I had you," she replied with a smile. She had really enjoyed the fight, which she was not something she was used to. "Too bad, no money for me this time, " she finished sarcastically. Brushing herself off, she headed to join her husband with the other participants.

"Good job, honey," Krillin smiled at his wife as she approached.

"This just means you need to win now," frowned 18 to her husband, then she smiled wide and gave her best friend a hug.

"That was a joke, right?" Krillin chuckled weakly, but also knowingly.

"Maybe," the blond continued to smile.

Tien walked over somewhat slower, "That was awesome," Goku exclaimed, walking over to meet the panting fighter partway, "I didn't know you could do that with the Kaioken! Your power was crazy!"

"Yeah, it's like stacking Kaioken on Kaioken instead of just your base, it is very draining, but powerful," Tien replied, still breathing heavy.

On the edge of the group a Young boy watched the other participants congratulate the fighters. Uub stared at the group of Z-fighters, _that was insane, and these other guys don't even seem to be bothered by it. What have I gotten myself into?_ His newfound confidence began fading away.

* * *

I hope this chapter finds everyone well. It was a lot of fun to write, I hope you all enjoyed it. Feel free to review, I like the feedback.

R: Hell yea! It's good to see Tien actually get some power upgrades.

A: Well, then I hope you liked this chapter, because he got some serious ones.

R: Dragon Ball Abridged reference; spotted. Also another great chapter, keep up the good work.

A: Thank you, I will!

R: Nice DBZA reference, I'm wondering how differently you'll handle the fight between Uub and Goku. Keep up the good work.

A: Unfortunately you will just have to wait and see.

Have a great week!


	5. The Son of Vegeta

"If you will give us some time to repair the ring, we will continue with the tournament!" assured the tournament announcer while tournament staff hurried to replace broken tiles and clear rubble.

"Hey, Goku," A tall warrior with tattered clothes puffed as he continued to catch his breath, "do you have any senzu beans?"

"Yup," the messy haired saiyan responded, "we brought some so that we could fight at our fullest the whole time." He pulled out a small bag, the sound of the beans shifting inside could be heard as it moved. "Since we have not needed any for a long time, Korin has been able to stock up," grinned the earth raised saiyan.

"It has been peaceful for a long time," Tien replied, "but that's no reason to get complacent in our training, but I'm sure you know that."

"Of course he knows that," Vegeta cut in, mildly irritated, "he is a warrior. The problem is teaching that to the next generation. Trunks trains, but only at my behest. Bulma is so focused on his taking over the company and the boy himself is only focused on his fiancée." The saiyan prince relaxed his face and closed his eyes, "perhaps this tournament will be a kick in the pants for him."

"Trunks is getting married!" exclaimed Goku, "that's great!"

Overhearing their conversation, Trunks blushed while Goten grinned wide, "and I'm the best man, isn't that right, big guy?" the latter teased as he punched the lavender-haired saiyan in the shoulder. Trunks sheepishly scratched the back of his head.

Leaving the group, Goku walked over towards his first round opponent. The boy Uub flinched back and began shaking. "Hey Uub, don't be so scared. I just wanted to say hello and wish you luck in our fight. I'm sure it will be great."

"Uh...yeah, sure!" The mohawked boy responded slightly more resolute than before. The Saiyan warrior put his fist out in a friendly gesture with a smile on his face. After a moment, Uub bumped his fist with Goku's and smiled back. _These people may be strong, but they are very nice,_ thought the young warrior as Goku walked back towards his friends, _I will do my best to win_.

"What was that about dad?" Gohan asked as his father returned.

"Oh, nothing," Goku smiled, "just encouraging him," the messy haired saiyan pointed over to where Uub stood, the boy seeming more confident.

"Okay, ladies and gentleman!" the tournament announcer could be heard over all the chatter of the waiting audience, "We are now ready for the next match!" There was a roar of applause from the audience. They had never seen the tournament be this exciting before. "We will now call the participants of the fifth match to the ring," Continued the official.

Trunks and Piccolo both walked casually into the center of the ring. "Trunks was a champion of the children's division tested at the tournament many years ago. It will be a treat to see how he has improved, because he was already giving a tremendous show then!" The crowd cheered as the saiyan warrior smiled and waved at the crowd. He found his fiancée, a tall blond-haired woman, sitting a little ways away from the rest of the Z fighter's group and waved faster in her direction. She smiled from ear to ear waving back at him. She seemed to be saying something back at the young man, but he couldn't make it out.

"She is wishing you luck," The namekian responded knowingly, using his enhanced hearing to get the message across.

"And over here, we have Piccolo," the announcer continued, "He was the runner-up in a tournament long ago and really left a… mark on the tournament." Piccolo scowled and looked at the ground. "Anyway, let these two juggernauts begin their fight!" concluded the announcer to the applause of the crowd.

Piccolo took fighting stance, his white cape flowing in the wind, "so, Trunks, how has your training been going?" he smirked as the two stared each other down.

"You tell me!" Trunks replied. pulling back a right hook, the lavender haired saiyan charged. The young man's fist went through an afterimage and a foot collided with his back. Piccolo smirked as his counter sent his adversary tumbling across the ring.

Picking himself up, the boy charged again. Feinting another right hook, the lavender haired fighter turned to send a left kick into his opponent. Piccolo however, saw the attack coming and dodged once again with an after image. Trunks instantly turned, raising his block, just as piccolo's foot collided with him. "You should really be less predictable, picco..ugh" Trunks said as an energy blast hit his back.

"You're the one who is predictable," Piccolo returned, "your movements are obvious." the namekian crossed his arms and jumped away from his adversary.

Trunks picked himself up once again, brushing off his capsule corp tank top. "My dad says the same thing," grinned the young saiyan, "guess this will be good practice." Trunk's white aura exploded around him, "AH!" cried the warrior. PIccolo didn't reply, he only resumed his defensive posturing. The young saiyan charged once more, his brow furrowed in concentration. This time his fist met Piccolo's block. The namekian then grabbed his opponent's other arm and shot eye beams at his torso.

Trunks grunted as he took the beams, burning holes in his tank top. The lavender warrior then flipped back and double kicked the taller namekian's chin. Piccolo fell back, rubbing his chin with one hand. "My turn," he smirked as he charged his smaller opponent. As the shoulder point on his cape brushed the ring, the namekian warrior collided with the saiyan. The two exchanged blows at super speeds.

"That's a fairly high level for Trunks' base form," commented Goku, "he's above Frieza's fifty percent. Who do you think is stronger, Goten, you or him?"

"I am, of course," Goten answered quickly, then he turned to watch his rival fight with a less-than-confident look on his face. _I'll have a better idea when he transforms,_ the young saiyan thought.

"I'm just glad I don't have to fight any of you super saiyans yet," Krillin put in, "as long as Pan hasn't turned super saiyan yet, haha. She hasn't yet, has she?"

"Not yet," Gohan replied, the little one in question holding his pant leg as she watched the match, "but you will soon, won't you Pan?"

The little girl looked up at her father with a huge grin, "yup, I'm gonna become really strong like you and Grandpa." Gohan knelt down to pick her up, giving her a big hug. "Go, Piccolo!" the tiniest fighter pumped her fist in the air in encouragement.

Between the punches and kicks, Piccolo sent a kiai into his opponent. The young saiyan skidded a few feet, stopped himself, then shot back into the namekian. The lavender haired fighter's elbow found its way into the tall namekian's stomach. Piccolo didn't budge. He grabbed his opponent's wrist and threw him up into the air. Trunks flew high into the air, unable to slow his ascent, his adversary phasing in behind him and elbowing the saiyan in the back, sending the dazed warrior flying back towards the ring. Not content to let him just hit the ground, the Namekian warrior caught up with his foe and grappled him, flying him faster and faster towards the tile.

_I've got to do something!_ Trunks thought urgently. As they approached the ground, the lavender-haired saiyan pulled out his power. "Ha!" the young fighter exclaimed as his aura turned yellow, his hair following suit and standing on end, and he quickly broke out of the namekian's hold. The super saiyan caught his fall with one hand on the tile floor and shot at Piccolo. A left kick sent the surprised warrior flying away from the ring.

Trunks landed in the center of the ring, basking in the familiar feel of the super saiyan transformation. "Trunks appears to be on fire," the announcer exclaimed over the now constant roar of the crowd, "It is a different color than Tien's technique, but the effects appear to be similar, if his sudden overpowering of Piccolo is anything to go by."

Piccolo suddenly reappeared in the ring smirking, "Finally we can get serious," he pulled off his turban, throwing it onto the grass. Then he lifted his cape off his shoulders, throwing it next to his turban. Both articles caused an audible crash when they hit the ground. Piccolo stood for a moment, stretching out his neck.

"Ready?" Trunks taunted with a smirk on his face.

Piccolo returned the look, "Almost, HA!" The tall namekian's purple gi rippled as white energy surrounded him. "AHH!" continued the yell as Piccolo's veins bulged and the ground shook. The two charged each other simultaneously, crashing with a sonic boom. For several moment the two fighters traded blows onto the other's blocks. Trunks deflected one punch into the air as the golden warrior ducked down and swept piccolo's feet out from under him. Grabbing one of the legs, trunks threw the namekian over his shoulder onto the tile, cracking several.

The super saiyan lept back and then flew forward, building speed. The prone namekian jumped up in time to meet the saiyan's kiai and get thrown back. Sensing the next move, Piccolo spun in time to block the attack intended for the namekian's back. Taking advantage of the boy's surprise, the green fighter heatbutt the saiyan, grabbed his arm and threw him into the ring.

Following up, Piccolo flew to where the young saiyan landed, colliding both his fists into the boy's gut. Coughing up saliva, the golden warrior grabbed the wrist of his opponent and threw him away.

"They are both stronger than the Cell jrs that Cell created in his tournament." Gohan observed, impressed. Vegeta smirked knowingly, but said nothing.

"This is savage!" the announcer exclaimed, barely above the crowd's volume, "neither of the fighters are letting up!"

Trunks picked himself up, huffing as he recovered from getting the wind knocked out of him. "Not bad, hehe" he puffed. Reigniting his aura, he prepared for another exchange.

"Not bad yourself," Piccolo was also panting slightly. Without any more warning the two flew at each other once again. The audience watch as the two fighters fought in the air, by this point not fazed by the ability of flight. Punches and kicks were exchanged, most blocked but several hitting home. One of Piccolo's kicks hit Trunks hard in his stomach, sending him flying to one corner of the ring. Reorienting himself, the golden warrior landed on his feet and fired several energy blasts from his right hand. The Namekian warrior easily deflected the blasts into the sky, only to have his saiyan opponent appear in the air above him. A hammer strike down went right through the green fighter's afterimage.

A powerful kick from Piccolo met another afterimage from his opponent, and for several moments the two martial artists exchanged attacks and afterimages, neither one finding a good hit. Piccolo went for a haymaker from above the saiyan, but this time trunks countered with a explosive kiai around him, sending his adversary flying. Before he could regain control of himself, Piccolo found a knee in his gut. The attacker then elbowed the namekian in the back.

Piccolo retaliated with a spin to free himself from the makeshift hold. Quickly raising his open palm, he sent an energy wave point blank into the yellow haired warrior's face. Dazed, the saiyan could not block Piccolo's downward smash.

The saiyan regained his senses and realized he was flying down towards the ground. Thinking quickly, it was all the young fighter could do to change his trajectory to land inside the ring. Picking himself up out of the rubble of another tile, the tattered saiyan smirked. "Time to kick it up a notch!" he exclaimed while his enemy landed on the other side of the ring. "Ha!" the young saiyan warrior called out while his aura grew. Piccolo grit his teeth while he felt the increase in his opponent's ki.

Trunks flew at the namekian, who responded with a cross guard raised. Disappearing just as he reached his adversary, the super saiyan reappeared to jab his elbow into the stunned Piccolo's back. The older warrior caught his fall with both hands and flipped forward, using his momentum to gain distance.

The super saiyan was unrelenting, mid flip the warrior appeared next to the namekian and punched him in the midsection, sending him flying the other way. It was all Piccolo could do to keep himself from sliding right off the ring edge. Skidding to a halt at the edge, the green warrior brought up one arm to block the now visible Trunks from other attack, using the other arm to grab hold of the saiyan and fling himself back toward the center of the ring.

_At least he is still fairly predictable,_ Piccolo reassured himself, _but he's just so fast. I have to use it soon._ The yellow warrior once again flew in for an exchange of blows. It was all the namekian could do to keep some semblance of a defense up. He was very quickly losing ground. Trunks' right hook hit a well placed block by his opponent. The saiyan then kicked at the green fighter's left leg, and piccolo was forced another step back to avoid the attack.

Piccolo jumped back while he still had some space to do so and fired one energy wave from each hand. The two met at Trunks' position and exploded on impact. The saiyan flew up above the dust cloud, having dodged the blasts. Piccolo fired beams from his eyes to keep the saiyan on his toes. The boy dodged to the side and returned fire with an energy blast of his own. With a grunt of effort the namekian deflected the blast up into the air.

Trunks instantly was on top of the taller warrior, a grin on his face. He pushed a ki ball into the exposed stomach of the namekian. The ball exploded on contact, blowing off the top of Piccolo's purple gi and sending him flying. The topless fighter used his energy to change his path up onto the air.

"Trunks is almost as strong as you were during the cell games, dad," Gohan commented, as engrossed in the action as all the Z fighters were.

"Yeah, he's doing great," Replied the older saiyan, not taking his eyes off of the fight.

"I admit you are much stronger than me," Piccolo congratulated, floating in the air above the ring, "but strength isn't everything."

"Hit me with your best shot," taunted the spawn of Vegeta.

"Okay, but you asked for it," smirked the namekian. He brought both his arms to his sides, charging a ball of energy in each.

"It looks like Piccolo is going to use a technique of some kind!" Cried the announcer from outside the ring. Trunks put up a crossblock in his opponent's direction, bracing himself for impact.

The energy balls in Piccolo's hands grew and shone incredibly brightly, "Instant Hellzone!" cried the namekian as he thrust his hands forward, firing the energy gathered in them. The energy split as it fell, into dozens of energy spheres that quickly created a hemisphere of energy around the young super saiyan.

Surprised by the attack, Trunks looked around at the mass of energy balls, stunned for a moment. Suddenly the energy began crashing in around from all directions at once. _No way out!_ Thought the golden warrior frantically trying to come up with a counter. The blasts all exploded on Tunks in the center of the ring, creating a large cloud of dust.

As the wind blew the dust away, Trunks was revealed standing in the center of the ring where the blast had exploded. His shirt and pants were torn from the explosion. Yellow fire still engulfed the young man as he maintained his transformation, but his eyes gazed out in a daze as he fell to his knees. Sweat dripping down his forehead fell to the remains of the tile around him.

Piccolo was not about to lose this opportunity, moving quickly he charge and gut punched the dazed warrior. Saliva flew out of his mouth as the super saiyan flew towards the edge of the ring. Wisps of smoke still rose from the super saiyan's body as he regained his senses and dug his hands into the tile to stop himself.

Thinking quickly, the namekian fighter flew towards his slowing opponent and slammed a fist into his back, forcing him to go prone on his stomach. The advantaged martial artist then kicked his adversary into the air and sent an energy wave into him, sending out over the grass. Coming in for the finishing blow, the Piccolo reappeared over the stunned super saiyan and punched him in the side, towards the ground.

The Namekian suddenly felt a grip on his upper arm, and he noticed the Trunks had grabbed him and was smirking. After tanking the blow to his side, the son of Vegeta flipped the namekian over and pushed off of him with both feet. The youth flew into the air while Piccolo flew towards the ground. The namekian sent a wide energy wave into the grass to slow and stop his fall. After regaining control the tired warrior flew back onto the ring.

"Whoa! That was a close one for both parties!" exclaimed the old official, "This has been an awesome match!" The crowd seemed to go crazy with jubilation.

Piccolo stood, huffing to catch his breath. Trunks floated in the air, panting nearly as hard. "Looks like you just about reached your limit," Trunks huffed between breaths.

"That make two of us," countered the namekian.

"You should just give up, there is no way you can win now," Boasted the super saiyan.

Piccolo grinned, "not a chance." These were the fights he lived for. Maybe he couldn't hold a candle to goku anymore, but he still loved a good fight with a powerful opponent. The namekian sent an energy blast towards Trunks' right side. While the super saiyan's attention was on that attack, the green fighter sent another into the ground underneath the flying warrior.

"Wha," the youth began, confused. Both blasts had created clouds of dust on Trunks' right side. Just then trunks saw electricity coming from the namekian's right hand. The hand was raised to his forehead, four finger extended and split down the middle in two sets of two.

Goku recognized the attack, or the similarity to one, just before Piccolo called, "Double beam cannon!" The tall warrior extended his charging arm out at an angle from Trunks and a beam shot out of each pair of fingers, each with another beam circling the main one slightly behind. The beams curved towards the waiting saiyan, angling to cross each other right at his position and hit him with both at the same time.

_Ha! I can dodge an attack like that easily,_ the golden fighter thought happily, _then he will have no energy left._ Trunks began moving to his left, safely out of harm's way, when something grabbed his right leg. The surprised saiyan looked down to see a green hand gripped on his boot. Following the arm it was attached to, Trunks saw it belonged to his opponent. He had stretched his arm to grab the youth and keep him in place! Trunks gasped as he suddenly realized the previous two energy blast had been to create the dust clouds to obscure the arm while Trunks was focused on the beams!

Piccolo pulled his opponent back into the path of the beams. _I need full power... now! _Thought the super saiyan desperately. He crossed his arms in front of him, the direction the beams were coming from. "AHH!" he yelled, his aura exploding and flowing faster than before. He had no more time, gritting his teeth he braced for impact.

The namekian was forced to let go of the boy when he powered up. The energy was to much for him. He watched as his handiwork played out in front of him. _Maybe the attack will just push him out of bounds, _thought the tired namekian, his hands fallen at his sides, _even if it does pierce him, I lined them up with non-vital areas. He'll live._

The super saiyan grit his teeth, his face tensed as the beams crashed into his crossed arms. He could feel his flesh being torn into at the point of impact. Pushing out all the power he had, he felt the two energies begin to give. Blood dripping down his arms, the boy held the attacks with all his might. His arms felt like they were going through a shredder, but he continued to push with his ki. In an instant, the forward momentum of the attacks was reversed, and Trunks successfully deflected them back towards Piccolo. Both beam flew into the ring and into the ground harmlessly save for one tearing through the namekian's left arm.

Piccolo cried out in pain as his own attack was used against him. Trunks slowly landed, the full power of his super saiyan on display for all to see and sense. All the Z fighter gasped, especially Goten. Vegeta smirked, lowered his crossed arms and gazed proudly on his son.

After the initial pain Piccolo looked at his injured arm, then back at Trunks, "I have nothing left," he said with a grunt as his body regenerated the hole in his arm, "I give up." The namekian smiled as he finished.

"Piccolo has surrendered! Trunks wins the match!" called the official, to more applause from the spectators.

Trunks powered down, letting his lavender hair fall once again. He looked down, his shirt was in shreds and one of his pant legs was torn off at the knee. He thought he looked pretty silly. The young man looked up into the stands to see his friends reactions. Most of them were smiling back at him. Looking for one particular person's reaction, he saw her hugging Videl's arm, screaming while jumping up and down. That and Videl's awkward face made the young saiyan chuckle. He was glad she seemed to be over some of her awkwardness around his friends. With a smile he walked over to Piccolo and held out his hand. The namekian shook it and the two exited the ring.

"You did great!" Goten said with a smile while placing his hand on his friend's shoulder.

Trunks smiled and then went over to his father. Vegeta gave him a grin, "Well done, son." The young man beamed at the praise, then Vegeta continued, "I'll see you in your next match." Suddenly the boy stopped, now realizing that his father was probably his next opponent.

"We will call Vegeta and Nareg to the ring in a moment…" The announcer trailed off, "once we repair the ring… again." the older man hung his head, _this is going to be a long tournament._

* * *

I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Feel free to leave a review, I enjoy seeing the feedback!

R: That was fantastic! Tien is always undersold, so that was great.

A: I agree. I think tien could have played a much larger role in early and mid Z than he did. I think by buu there wasn't really a way to have him keep up, but I hope you will enjoy what I will do with him in this story.


	6. The Son of Goku

"Vegeta participated in a tournament many years ago, but left before he was able to fight in the ring," declared the middle-aged announcer as the prince entered the ring with his arms crossed. His opponent did a somersault onto the ring, landing gracefully and raising a peace sign to the air. Multiple women could be heard gasping and swooning. "Nareg participated last tournament, but was eliminated during the preliminaries. He seems to be a hit with the ladies," continued the official. The pretty boy smiled at the audience, causing many girls to scream with joy. The speaker raised his hand, "who knows what kind of match we have in store with these two? Well, we'll find out! Let the match begin!" The audience cheered.

"A pretty boy like you has no chance in a real fight," taunted the pointy haired saiyan.

The demeanor of the blond martial artist suddenly changed, his smile dropping, "I worked too hard to fall here. Come and get me." The human took a defensive stance.

Without another word Vegeta rose off the tile about a foot, and hovered over to the very center of the ring. Landing a couple feet from his opponent, the prince smirked. Nareg stepped forward and began wailing on the saiyan. Vegeta stood and took the hits, not budging an inch.

"Whoa, Nareg is starting this fight off in a big way, but it seems to not have any effect on Vegeta!" exclaimed the referee.

The prince of saiyans was slowly raising his power. Nareg soon found an invisible force making it harder and harder to strike his opponent. Gritting his teeth, he continued giving the strikes all the power he could. After a minute, the human found he couldn't even reach the saiyan anymore.

The aura of Vegeta expanded as he tested the strength of his opponent. The human jumped back as he felt the force begin pushing his body. Recollecting himself he took a defensive stance once again. The force was less out here, but Nareg could still feel it increasing.

"You think I don't know what your doing, don't you?" Smirked the blond martial artist, "You're pushing me back with your ki." Vegeta raised his brow in mild surprise. "Well, I know how to use ki too! Haa!" the human's ki shot up somewhat.

"He's pretty strong," Tien commented, "he's stronger than I was my first tournament."

"Yeah," agreed Krillin, "if it wasn't for us," referencing the Z-warriors, "and the kid Goku said is the reincarnation of buu, he would probably win the whole tournament."

The prince rose his power further, a breeze pushing out in all directions from his person. "Whoa," cried the announcer, "A strange force is pushing out from vegeta in all directions! What kind of technique is this?"

The wind continued to pick up force, and the human fighter had to focus to maintain his footing, "I won't let you just push me out this way!" he called as he began walking towards the prince. With each step, however, the force pushing him away grew stronger. Five feet from his opponent and Nareg could advance no further, his blond hair whipping in the wind. The force just continued to climb and the blond warrior had to kneel and place his hands on the ground to avoid being thrown back.

"I don't know how much more of this Nareg can take!" Declared the tournament official.

Vegeta hadn't even lowered his arms from his chest, but his opponent was on the ground trying to resist the former's power. Slowly, the human was pushed back. As the force grew and he began to tire, Nareg found his resistance increasingly futile.

"No!" called the human, and he punched a fist into the tile to give himself a better grip. Confident he could hold on better now, the struggling warrior began looking for his next move. _I'm trapped!_ Despaired the fighter, _any movement and I will fly out of the ring, and I can't just wait here to lose! I don't have a way out!_

After a minute longer, the young man once again began to be pushed back, his arm tearing through more tile as he struggled against this unstoppable force. Suddenly his grip gave way, and he flew towards the edge of the ring. Unable to do anything, the fighter flew out over the grass that surrounded the ring. Suddenly the force stopped, as Vegeta allowed his opponent to fall out of bounds. _This is it!_ Thought Nareg as he focused his ki. Instead of falling to the ground, he floated a couple feet off the grass. Surprise was found on many of the Z-fighter's faces, the saiyan prince included.

"It seems the ability to fly has saved Nareg for the moment," observed the tournament official while the floating contestant smirked a little.

Vegeta smirked right back, "not bad," he congratulated his opponent, "you have my respect as a warrior, but this match is over. I haven't even begun to show my real power or move to physically attack you, either would beat you in an instant. Give up."

Nareg grinned as the demand was made, "yeah, I'm basically out of strength. It's all I can do to just float here." slowly he lowered himself onto the ground, standing on shaky legs.

"And Nareg is out of bounds! Vegeta is the winner!" The crowd roared for the match. While not as breathtaking as the other recent fights, it was a good show nonetheless.

The saiyan prince walked off the ring toward where his opponent stood. Extending a handshake, the blond human took it, and the two shook. Nareg followed the saiyan back to the group of other fighters.

"Great fight!" Krillin exclaimed as the human got close, "where did you learn to fly?"

"Oh," the pretty boy looked embarrassed, "I just figured it out on my own, I guess."

"That's awesome," the midget replied with a big smile, an idea forming in his head. The tournament was once again stalled while a few of the tiles were replaced.

"Hey, Goten," Trunks called his best friend, "how do you feel about your match with Buu?"

The messy haired saiyan sighed, "to be honest, I don't think I can win," he grinned sheepishly, "but I will try my best! Valese is in the stands and I want to impress her," The young saiyan looked over to where his girlfriend, a shorter brunette in a yellow dress, sat in the stands. "We have only been together for a few months and she knows I am strong, but not exactly how strong, haha," The black haired saiyan ended in a nervous laugh.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about it too much," reassured the lavender haired youth, "your easily among the top ten strongest fighters in the world, maybe in the universe. Just go out there and give it your best and it'll all work out."

"Yeah," replied the nervous saiyan, "I'm sure it will." The two friends bumped fists. "By the way," began Goten, "how do you feel about facing your father in your next match?"

"Oh, I'm not worried," the older saiyan replied awkwardly scratching the back of his head, "I can't win, but I will give him one heck of a fight!" The lavender haired saiyan finished with a clenched fist in front of him.

"Ok, we are ready for the next match!" came the announcer's voice over the speakers, "if we can have Goten and Buu come to the ring we can get the next match started!" The crowd roared once again.

"Buu!" cried the majin as he pumped his yellow glove into the air. The pink demon nonchalantly walked onto the ring, a large smile on his face as the crowd cheered for him.

"Buu has been runner-up twice now, both times losing only to Mister Satan himself!" The announcer called over the crowd. "He has always easily defeated any opposition, showing the gulf of power between the champ's number one student and everyone else! What kind of fight can we expect from this powerhouse, especially with all the techniques the fighters in this tournament bring?"

With a far more stern look on his face, the younger son of Goku walked confidently onto the ring after his pink opponent. The young saiyan looked up to Valese, who was smiling and waving to the fighter. Goten smiled and sent a peace sign back.

"Goten hasn't participated in a tournament for a while, but he gave a spectacular performance as the runner-up of the youth division a few tournaments ago. I, for one, am excited to see his growth and how he will fair against the champ's best disciple!"

Buu stood in his usual pose while his saiyan opponent took a fighting stance characteristic of his father's training. The tournament official began the match and Goten took off. He began with a barrage of punches and kicks all over his adversary's stationary body. The youth then jumped back. _This is useless,_ the warrior thought solemnly. His attacks didn't even leave a imprint in the majin's soft body.

"I guess there's no point in remaining at this level," the messy haired martial artist grinned as a white aura wrapped his body, his level rising substantially. "AHH!" exclaimed the warrior as his red gi rippled in the wind. Not waiting to bask in the gaze of the audience, he jumped into action. A fist quickly found its way into the pink fighter's cheek. As he pulled the hand back, Goten smiled as he saw a small print left in the demon's pudgy body. The son of Goku resumed his assault, each punch and kick leaving a shallow mark on Buu's body.

"My turn!" cried Majin Buu all of a sudden, and a small kiai expanded in all directions, throwing the surprised half-saiyan into the air. Goten quickly recovered, floating in mid-air as his pink opponent began walking towards him with a big smile on the majin's face. Buu disappeared from view, reappearing with his fist in the young man's gut. Flying further up into the air, the nearly knocked out saiyan looked on with glazed eyes as he watched the demon fly above him. A hard kick sent the messy haired warrior flying towards the ground.

Regaining his senses, the son of Goku's eyes flashed green and yellow fire ignited around him as he stopped his decent. The martial artist quickly righted himself and landed on the ring. Buu joined him on the ground, a big smile still shown on his face.

"Goten appears to be using the same power as Trunks!" The announcer shared with the audience, "Will it bring him victory against the tremendous Buu? Wait and see!" The audience exploded in yet more cheering.

Goten once again entered a fighting pose, his golden locks waving in the wind. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Valese waving to him. Almost responding, the youth caught himself, _I have to remain focused!_ Jumping back into combat the saiyan launched a volley of punches and kicks once again. The marks left were deeper, but the round fighter still didn't budge. Buu casually lifted an arm, blocking his opponent's next kick, and sent his other fist into the young fighter's gut once again. Goten flew back, winded, but was able to control his flight to land in the ring.

"You're too weak for Buu," the majin stated, his smile dropping, "This is boring."

"Oh, yeah?" Goten brought his arms to his side, "AHH!" the young warrior's yellow aura reignited. His energy climbed steadily and the arena began to shake slightly. The Z-warriors were all surprised by the level of power, most notably Trunks.

"He's as strong as you are, isn't that right Trunks?" Queried Gohan.

"Yes, he and I are equals," Replied the lavender haired fighter, "I didn't know he had gotten this strong too."

"It's definitely something to behold," Interjected Tien, the triclops in awe of the strength of the two young fighters, "You are both stronger than Perfect Cell at the beginning of his cell games, but I guess that par for the course with super saiyans."

The super saiyan fired an energy wave at his opponent. Buu easily caught the wave, only to have the youth hammer fist his back, sending the pink fighter into the blast. Swinging the back of his fist around into the golden warrior, the majin connected and Goten once again found himself sent into the air. His blast hadn't had the desired effect, but the messy-haired fighter happily noticed that his hammer had created a noticeable crater in the back of the demon's neck. Goten had expected the pop sound made as the crater was smoothed out by the creature's regeneration, but he was happy to be at least causing some damage.

"It looks like this fight could still go either way!" cried the announcer, his complete underestimating of Buu obvious only to those who could sense energy, "Who will come out victorious? Can Buu, Mister Satan's star pupil, pull out a win here?"

Buu disappeared, and two fists stuck the upper back of the half-saiyan, sending him into the ring. His red gi all torn up, the fighter stood back up from his collision with the tile floor. "I know you are still holding back, Buu!" he called out to his opponent who again didn't follow up his successful assault with any lasting damage.

"Buu having fun now," replied the bubblegum monster, "Usually the fights are too easy for Buu, so Buu want to enjoy it."

"I guess I should be grateful then," smirked the super saiyan warrior, "so I will give you the best fight I can." The fighter pulled his arms back to his side. "Ka...Me…" began the son of Goku.

"Goten is preparing to fire off a Kamehameha wave! A signature attack of the Turtle school of martial arts! It is a powerful technique that we have seen many times in the tournament's history!" Explained the tournament official as a blue glow began to shine from between the youth's hands.

"Ha...Me…" continued the super saiyan. He was pouring as much power as he could into this attack. His golden aura expanded as he concentrated his power. Buu put both his hands out in front of him in the expected path of the blast.

"Ha!" screamed the young man, throwing his arms in front of him with all the force he could muster, the blue wave of power shot towards the ready majin. The pink demon grinned as the blast closed in, poised to deal with it easily. The youth down bellow then pulled his hand to the side, and the blast followed suit. It flew around Buu's guard, and collided with the exposed side of his large belly. There way a moment of resistance, but the majin could not turn in time to stop the blast from piercing through his body and flying off into the distance.

Before the pink fighter could regenerate Goten used the last of his reserves to spring into action. He flew up and grabbed the large donut looking majin by the arm and threw him over his shoulder with all his strength, down towards the ground outside the ring. The surprise fading, Buu stopped himself just a foot above the grass, the familiar pop sound signalling the hole in his side filling in.

_Darn it!_ Despaired the torn up young man floating in the air. With what little energy he had left, Goten partially flew, partially fell, down towards the majin as fast as he could. He crossed his arms in an "x" shape out in front of him, hoping the force of his impact would push buu down the last foot to a ring out.

"Buu!" called the pink demon instinctively. He punched upwards, completely negating the downward momentum of the super saiyan. Then he punched the stopped warrior with his other fist, sending him up, out of the stadium. Goten had almost no power left, and so he flew helplessly over the surrounding area of the island. "Buu!" over an empty field Buu reappeared over the saiyan fighter, hammer fisting the young martial artist down, deep into the earth.

Within a couple of minutes, a hovercraft containing the tournament announcer flew overhead. "It looks like Goten has landed outside the ring! Buu is the winner!" he called into the mic, so the audience would know the outcome.

Buu remained floating in the sky when a cloud of dust puffed up around Goten's entry hole into the ground. The half-saiyan, hair returned to black, rose up out of the hole. His gi torn up and his body covered with bumps and bruises, the young man floated up to where buu was waited and extended a hand. "Good job, Buu! That was fun," he remarked while the two shook hands, Buu grinning widely. The two fighters flew back towards the stadium, though Goten did more slowly.

The young saiyan arrived to the ring to great applause. Buu had already joined the other fighters and the tournament staff was preparing the ring for the next match. Aware of his ragged appearance, the youth chuckled and scratched the back of his head. He saw Valese waving to him, so he decided to touch down in the space next to her.

The teenage girl clapped her hands together, "Goten, you were amazing! I didn't know you were THIS cool!"

"Haha," the blushing saiyan laughed, "sorry about how I look."

"Oh, don't be silly!" replied the brunette. She gave the defeated warrior a hug, and a kiss on his cheek. "This isn't a bad look for you anyway," she giggled, looking at his torn gi. Goten turned even redder.

Goku watched his youngest son return with a look of pride on his face. _He lacks motivation sometimes, and he gets distracted, but he sure works hard and it shows,_ thought the older saiyan. The warrior looked over to his opponent in the next match. The boy seemed to be mentally preparing himself. _I can sense he is hiding some power,_ the saiyan thought of the reincarnated majin, _the question is, how much?_

"Ok, we are ready for the next match!" The speakers announced, after several minutes, over the chatter of the crowd. "If we could have Goku and Uub enter the ring, we will get the next fight started!" A cheer came from the crowd.

Goku and the small boy walked towards the stairs of the ring. The tall saiyan allowed the small boy to enter the ring first, then he walked up the stairs. "Uub is from a small desert village. This is his first tournament, but he did well during the preliminaires. We will have to see how he performs on the big stage!" The announcer explained, "Goku, on the other hand, has participated in many tournaments, twice getting runner-up and once taking home the title. He is an accomplished warrior by any metric. Uub's first main stage match will certainly be a trial by fire!" The audience cheered for the two fighters. "Let the match begin!" Finished the announcer as the two fighters took their stances.

The warriors stared down each other. _Hmm...his stance is okay, but it's obvious he still has a lot to learn,_ analyzed the saiyan, _I'll let him make the first move._

_I guess I just have to give it my all! _Thought the boy, who then charged. Running at full speed, his tribal garb flowing in the wind, the boy quickly closed the gap between him and the black haired saiyan. The boy threw a hard right, which Goku blocked with a raised left arm. The boy jumped back to reposition. _I expected as much, but I had to be sure, _thought the mohawked warrior.

Uub sprang back into action, throwing several punches, all of which were blocked or dodged by the experienced martial artist. Goku threw a light punch to the boy's jaw, sending him flying back several yards. The boy landed in a heap, but quickly got back up.

"Haaa!" exclaimed the boy as he ran back into combat. The dark skinned warrior started with several more punches, then ducked down and swept Goku's feet out from underneath him. The older saiyan caught himself with his right hand, and used his position to send a kick into Uub's side. The boy was sent away again.

"Wow!" began the referee "Goku definitely seems to have the upper hand, but Uub is really holding his own in this!"

_He's still not using as much power as he did when he beat Upa,_ thought the earth-raised saiyan, _I need to get him to bring out more power._ "Is that all you've got?!" taunted Goku as he charged his unprepared opponent. Paying close attention to his own power output, the two fighters exchanged blows. Goku blocked a right hook and countered with a jab, the boy raising his arm in a curl to block the attack.

_I'm getting the hang of this,_ thought the boy has he grew more comfortable with the combat. The saiyan martial artist slowly raised the power of his attacks, hoping the boy would follow suit. He was right.

"Feel the force behind those punches!" exclaimed the announcer, "They could stop a train in its tracks!"

"They're at about King Piccolo's max level," observed Tien as he watched, "that's the level he beat Upa with. Now we'll see if he can go higher."

Goku swept the boys legs out from under him. Grabbing his shoulder sash, the tall saiyan threw the boy into the air. Disappearing, the older warrior kicked the midair fighter down onto the ring. Uub landed on all fours, breaking his fall, but only just.

The boy dashed to where Goku landed "Ahh!" He cried as he threw everything he had at the larger fighter. The blue gi wearing warrior met the charge with guard up, and the two exchanged blows again.

Goku threw a wide kiai that pushed the boy's limbs back, then a more concentrated one into the boy's now exposed stomach, sending him flying back. _He has more power, I know it!_ Thought the experienced saiyan, _I just have to motivate him, but how?_ Then, the saiyan smiled, _Oh, I know._ He refocused as the boy picked himself up once again.

* * *

Thanks again for taking the time to read this chapter. I appreciate the time spent, and I would also appreciate any feedback, especially constructive feedback. The next chapter is Goku vs. Uub, and I am excited for it.

R: I look forward to it. You write some intense fights. This is awesome. Usually I skip over them because people don't do DBZ battles justice, but I can see this playing out in my head as I read.

A: I am glad you enjoyed it, I like to envision the fights as they unfold, and I hope to transcribe those visions effectively to the audience. I am glad to here I have been successful, and I will work to keep that level of quality up in the future.

R: I like the story though I'm surprised that you had Piccolo weaker then trunks considering Piccolo while older would still be constantly training while trunks not so much obviously this isn't cannon but still a little surprising.

A: Yes, this Trunks is training a little more than his canon counterpart was implied to be doing, but we were never explicitly told how much he had been. Vegeta just said that they had gotten lazy, and to someone who trains 95% of their waking time, someone who trains 40-50% could be seen as lazy. As for Piccolo, he still trains but he is well into diminishing returns on that training. Unless something happens to help break through the barrier, like a fusion of a transformation, the training of a fighter approaches a limit that slows them down in their training. That is my take at least.

R: good job, I patiently await the arrival of the next chaoter

A: Well, uh, here you go. No more waiting (except for the next chapter, haha).


	7. Uub's Hidden Power

A man with a blue gi and yellow pants stood motionless as a small boy in brown and white robes lifted himself off the ground. White tile lay underfoot, surrounded by grass and, farther out, stadium stands filled with people cheering.

"My turn," Smirked the tall man, jumping into action. Dashing across the ring, the small boy readied himself. The old saiyan unleashed an assault on the boy's defensive position. A right jab blocked by a left, and a left hook batted to the side. Goku swept the feet out from under his young opponent. The human boy raising his guard as he noticed the double punch coming for his chest. The blow still knocked him away, but little damage was done. Uub caught himself a few yards back, dangerously close to the edge of the ring.

_Uh oh!_ The boy thought, realizing how close to the edge he was. Thinking quickly, the tan skinned human charged his waiting adversary, readying a right fist. The saiyan easily blocked the telegraphed blow, then brought up his own right to the boy's head. Uub tensed his face, as ready for the blow as he could be. It never came. The village boy felt a firm grasp on his forehead. He quickly batted the hand away and jumped back.

"What was that?" The boy demanded, confused.

A small village. People and animals baking in the hot sun. A dried riverbed. Dead crops. Thirst. Hunger. Scrawny brothers and sisters. Training. A trust placed. Hope. A long journey. The World Martial Arts Tournament. Suddenly Goku understood. _Just like Nam many years ago, this powerful boy has come to win money for water and food to outlast a drought,_ the saiyan thought through continued combat.

The boy had fought hard for his prize. Having attacked once again, he smashed his fist into the experienced warrior's double armed block. Spinning off of the block, Uub sent a kick to connect with the older warrior's side. It was Goku's turn to jump away to avoid further damage.

"He is slowly gaining strength," observed the resident namekian, "now he is stronger than I was during my first tournament."

"Do you really think he could be stronger than the present us?" Tien inquired of the turban-wearing warrior.

"I don't know, his energy seems somewhat shrouded," The namekian replied.

"You are going to have to do better than that if you want to save your village," Goku exclaimed, "You are way too weak to even beat Pan, let alone me."

"What?!" the young warrior cried in shock, " how do you know…" he trailed off. After a moment of collecting himself, "I don't care what you think I can and can't do. I will win and I will save my village!" Yelling the last part, the young boy charged again. He threw punch after punch, but the saiyan was able to keep up with him no matter how hard he tried.

Rolling off one blow, Goku grabbed the boy's other arm and threw him across to the other side of the ring. _His power is climbing still further,_ thought the earth-raised saiyan, _It's beginning to approach Raditz's level_. "Is that all?" taunted the messy haired warrior.

"Ahh!" cried Uub in reply. Yelling to the sky, he resumed his attack.

"Oh, wow!" exclaimed the commentator, "Goku seems to have the upper hand, but each time Uub is knocked down he seems to come back swinging harder!" The crowd roared.

The boy landed a fist in between the saiyan's guard, into his chest. Momentarily stunned by the other warrior landing a solid strike, Goku made a realization. _Not only is he getting stronger as he fights, but his technique is improving as well!_ The Saiyan sent another invisible kiai at the boy, but he raised his guard and absorbed the blow. Uub retaliated with a right cross, hitting his opponent's own raised guard. Pushing off the block, the human twisted, sending a kick into the saiyan's side. Goku reeled, jumping back to distance himself from the young fighter.

"That won't be enough," the old martial artist warned, "your family will die of thirst at this rate." _Let's see if I'm right about him,_ the confident warrior thought.

"What!?" the boy was taken aback, _how does this man know about my family? _ "No, I will win, and take care of them, whatever the cost!" He retorted, "HA!" the boy charged, but found his attack stopped short of its target. _Why can't I reach him anymore? _The ten-year-old felt an invisible force pushing him back. "What is this?!" he demanded. _Is this what happened in that earlier match?_

The messy haired saiyan let some of his energy flow around him. It was still only a small percentage of his power, but it would be enough. "You don't have near the power needed to defeat me," replied the powerful saiyan, "if you can't even reach me, then you should go home and die with the family you couldn't protect." With a grim look on his face, Goku walked towards the boy, pushing him back with his ki.

Uub struggled against the overwhelming power. _Is he right? Should I just accept my fate and be pushed out of the ring, doomed to watch my family die from starvation and thirst? Do I have a choice?_ All of this spun in the small boy's head as the pressure from the approaching saiyan increased, and the mohawked warrior found his feet slipping. _Do I have a choice?_

"Yes! I Do!" shouted Uub while his robes fluttered in the ki-powered wind. Gritting his teeth, the boy slowly put one foot forward. Then another. Then another. Each step was faster than the last. Though the pressure increased as he approached, the boy put himself on an undeniable collision course with its source. A walk, then a run.

Smirking, Goku punched the air in front of him, sending a shockwave that forced the boy to stop, but he only resumed his advance with the shockwave's passing. Reaching his target, the boy unleashed a flurry of blows on his taunter. The blows had no effect, Goku simply stood in the onslaught, his body not budging.

"He's reached the ginyu force's power!" Krillin exclaimed on the sidelines.

"You will lose, and you will die," the saiyan said darkly, grabbing the boy by his arm and throwing him into the air. At the top of his arc, Uub was hit by another air shockwave. The boy was falling towards the ground outside the ring.

"Rah!" cried the boy, launching a powerful blow away from his opponent, creating his own shockwave and sending him towards the ring once again. Using his momentum, he rocketed at the observing Goku, readying a powerful left hook. The saiyan swept his arm in Uub's directing, sending another shockwave. The young human barely dodged around it, firing his fist into the gut of his enemy.

The saiyan doubled over slightly, then grinned. Grabbing the outstretched arm, Goku looked Uub dead in the eyes, "If you can't do better than that, they will die. If you can't defeat me right here, right now, they will all die... and you stand no chance." The saiyan pushed the scared boy's arm aside and launched a powerful blow into his young adversary's gut, sending him flying.

Shocked, Uub could barely register what was happening. That punch had been the hardest he had ever felt, and it had sent him flying fast into the air. _This is it,_ despaired the boy, _I los… _Before he could even finish the thought, his opponent appeared in his path, and hammered him back down into the ring. The boy lay there, eyes closed, on a pile of broken tile.

"Uub's out cold!" Called the announcer, "I will begin the countdown! One! Two!" The audience watched with bated breath.

_I've never seen Kakarot talk or fight like that,_ the saiyan's rival thought, _is he really that desperate to push this boy?_ The prince stood, arms crossed, scowling as he tried to reason out the taller saiyan's behaviour.

"Three! Four!" continued the referee.

_He's right,_ despaired the near-unconscious boy, _I don't have the strength to beat him. I have fought harder than I ever have, and it didn't mean a thing. Mother, Father, Ravi, Manasa, everyone, I can't do this. I failed you, I am sorry._

"Five! Six!" Continued the count to the village boy's defeat.

As Uub fell into unconsciousness, Goku looked on, half-expecting to be disappointed. _Maybe I assumed too much. Maybe he is too young yet to dig into the power I feel inside of him._ The saiyan then worried that maybe he had been too hard on the boy.

"Seven! Eight!" The referee swung his forefinger with each count.

Blackness ate at the edges of Uub's mind's eye as his subconscious driftings to his family and friends faded away. The last image was of his parents. His mother, who was worried for his safety and well-being. His father, who believed in him and always supported and pushed him to be his best. They had struggled his entire life to feed him and his family. The whole village had fought through many hardships. They had always come out on top, sometimes with the help of his own strength. But this was as far as his strength could take him. Tears formed in the boy's eyes, _or is it?_ As the image of his parents faded Uub stopped it, _No! I...I can do this! I have to do this! There is no one else! If not me, who?! If not now, when?!_

"Nine, Te...oh?" the referee stopped. Goku, who had turned away from the fallen fighter, snapped back as the ground began to shake.

"I WILL NOT LOSE!" the young human yelled as his stood up, "AHH!" The rubble floated in the air around the boy. Uub charged his surprised opponent launching another punch into his stomach. This time the saiyan was pushed back several inches and he coughed up some saliva. The boy then spun a kick to the side of Goku's head, sending him flying to the other corner of the ring.

His head throbbing, the old saiyan smiled, "There we go, but you will still have to do better than that!" He flew back towards his attacker, swinging at the boys head. The fist stopped on a crossed arm block. The shock from the attack was felt by the whole stadium through the ground. As the two fighters traded blows, they began raising into the air. Uub grabbed one of the saiyan's punches, turned and threw him over his shoulder into the tile.

As more rubble was created, it too began to float into the air as the level of the fight continued to grow. "He's at about Frieza's fifty percent power!" exclaimed Gohan, "this kid is unreal!"

"So, this is the reincarnated Majin buu, huh?" Smirked the saiyan prince, "he sure has potential, I'll give him that."

The boy landed back on some partial tile, and dashed towards his opponent. The saiyan shot energy blasts out at various angles, which began to curve inwards. They converged in the boy's way, but the human just raised his guard and continued towards his adversary. "HAA!" The young fighter screamed as his fist snaked around Goku's block to smash into the taller participant's stomach. Then several energy blasts collided with the boy's back, searing into his muscle and flinging him into his stunned adversary.

"Ha, gotcha," smirked the saiyan, who grabbed the surprised human and rammed his knee into the boy's gut. Releasing him, Goku watched as the young fighter flew into the air and landed in a heap on the ground.

"THAT. IS. IT!" Screamed Uub, "HAA!" A white aura exploded around the fighter. _I can't lose!_ The floating tile rubble flew higher, shaking erratically. He shot at the tall saiyan, landing a kick on the side of his unexpected opponent's head.

A smile appeared on Goku's face as he flew into the air, "That's much better!" the happy fighter exclaimed as he wiped the blood from under his newly created head wound. Igniting his own white aura, he shot back to the ring, with Uub waiting. Starting with a right fist, Goku hit a crossed arm block from the boy as the latter was carried backwards by the saiyan's momentum. The collision created a sonic boom. Both fighters disappeared from view as sonic booms exploded all around the ring.

Vegeta raised his eyebrows and let his mouth gape somewhat, _this kid… he blows Frieza out of the water! He is almost as strong as me! In my base, anyway._  
The boy threw several punches at the experienced warrior in quick succession, but all were blocked. Goku then grabbed Uub's arms as the two fighters reappeared for the general audience in the center of the ring. Both fighters were deadlocked, fighting to push the other back. Thinking quickly, the young man butt his head against the saiyan. Stunned, Goku was unable to avoid the fist jabbed into his side, the elbow slamming into the top of his head, and finally the kick to his back that sent him sprawling towards the edge of the ring.

"This is incredible!" Exclaimed the announcer, "Uub has taken control of the fight! What will Goku do now?" The bystanders were, as usual, full of excitement for the fight.

Surveying his handiwork, the inexperienced boy was unprepared when the older saiyan flipped up off his back as sprung towards him. Swinging at his attacker, the boy was further disoriented when the image of the approaching fighter faded on impact, and a second figure followed, slamming the boy back to the other end of the ring.

A kiai followed the attack, but Uub was able to spin off the wall of force to avoid being pushed out of the ring. Pushing off the broken tile, the boy dashed back to his ready adversary. "I will protect my family!" he cried, swinging wide with his left.

The messy haired saiyan easily dodged the emotional attack, chopping the back the Uub's head as he passed. _He is beginning to lose focus on the fight, _thought the saiyan. The tan boy somersaulted with the blow, dug his feet into the tile, and turned his momentum back at his enemy. Goku hastily raised a block to deal with the outstretched fists of the boy _He is determined, though, _thought the saiyan with a smile.

Uub felt a punch in his gut. It's didn't hurt like before, but it still stunned him. He then felt a hand grasp around each of his wrists. The saiyan flung his adversary around by said wrists into the tile all around him, the boy's legs flailing helplessly under the g-forces. Goku finally released his grip, throwing the human into the air. As his sprawling opponent reached the top of his arc above the ring, the saiyan flew up to meet him.

Fighting with little more than instinct at this point, the boy shot back down towards the earth, quite a bit faster than simple falling would allow. _Did he just…fly? _thought the saiyan, realizing how quickly the boy was picking up fighting techniques. "I guess this is it!" called the ascending warrior, his right fist pulled at his side.

"I won't lose!" exclaimed the descending human, pulling his own arm in towards his core. Uub watched as the two fighter approached each other. As Goku threw his fist up towards the boy, Uub swore he saw what looked like a giant roaring ape head around the rising saiyan. "HAA!" came he deep roar from the reincarnated majin, throwing his own fist in front of his path.

Goku also noticed a shape barely visible around the human, a pink head with antenna and a sharp-toothed grin. _This is Buu, all right!_ Smiling, the saiyan let out his own battle cry, "Haa!"

Brown ape met pink demon in a collision of forces that engulfed the air around the two fighters. A white explosion spread over the sky, and most spectators had to look away from the bright light and the pressure of the energy. The silent light slowly faded as the sky returned to normal.

"It looks like the two fighters are falling and...and Uub is unconscious!" announced the tournament official, looking through binoculars. Uub landed in the ring head first with a crash. The adult saiyan landed gracefully on one knee on the other side of the ring. He rose wearing a grin from ear to ear.

"Uub is down!" exclaimed the announcer, "I will begin the count. One, Two, Three..."

"Grandpa is so strong, huh?" Pan asked her father.

"Yes, he sure is," Replied the spikey haired saiyan.

"Do you think I will be strong like him when I grow up?" asked the young girl.

Gohan picked up his young daughter, "If you train hard, one day you could be stronger than he is!" he encouraged her.

"Wow!" the little saiyan's eyes were full of wonder, "I will train hard!" she declared.

"Ten!" Finished the count, "The winner is Goku by knockout!" The winner of the match walked over to where the young boy lay on the ground, his body beginning to come to. The smile on Goku's face faded when he heard the ten-year-old whimpering and saw tear falling off his face.

"What's the matter?" asked the older fighter.

The boy curled into a ball, "I lost, now my family will die…" he trailed off as he began to sob.

Realizing that he may have pushed the young boy too far, the saiyan held out his hand, "No, they won't. I'll make sure they don't."

"How will you do that?" Uub asked quietly through his tears.

"Oh, I know the richest family in the world very well," explained the saiyan, "I'm sure they would be happy to help out." He pointed over to the blue-haired woman in the stands.

"Really?" sniffled the young human while he wiped away the tears. He took the messy haired saiyan's outstretched hand and pulled himself up.

"Definitely, I'll go over and ask, and then I want to train you," Goku replied, resuming the smile on his face.

"Train me?" asked the boy with a start, clearly taken aback by the comment. The saiyan flew over to where the billionaire was sitting before he could respond.

"So, how about it Bulma?" Asked Earth's hero, "You heard our conversation, Right? Can you help?"

Bulma crossed her arms, "you know I can't just give you money every time you ask for it." Then her face softened, "but I understand, and of course I will help this young boy's village. I will make a call right now."

"Awesome, I'll stop by later" his smile widened, and Goku hovered back over to the young boy, "so, how about it? I will train you and in return I will help make sure your village is taken care of." The boy seemed to hesitate.

"What's the matter, don't you want to see how strong you can get?" Asked the saiyan, " I bet you never thought you could be this strong, and this is just the tip of the iceberg."

"H...How can you be sure?" Uub said hesitantly.

"I just know," Goku responded quickly, "I will explain it all on the way. So, what do you say?"

"I...sure!" came the final reply from the young human.

"Wait!" came a yell from the stands, it was a middle aged woman in purple, "You can't just disappear again, Goku!"

"Aw, Chichi," complained the saiyan. He hovered over to where she was, standing now, in the stands, "Come on, I will visit, but I need to go and train him."

The older woman looked him over for a few seconds, "Ok," she finally said, "you can go. I know once you put your mind to it, there's no stopping you. Promise you will visit?"

"I promise!" came the quick response from the happy saiyan.

"You're leaving?" asked Goku's youngest son as the older warrior landed back with the other fighters.

"Yeah," began Earth's hero, "Keep up in your training too, I will pop…"

"Grandpa!" came a wail from about knee height next to the fighters, "You can't leave! You can't!" The young girl was holding onto the tall saiyan's pant leg tightly.

"Oh, it's okay, Pan," Goku reassure the youngster as he picked her up to embrace her tightly, "train hard, and I promise to visit a lot!"

"O...okay," came the hesitant reply, the girl on the verge of tears.

Vegeta simply stood on the edge of the group, scowling and looking away from his rival, his arms crossed.

"Goten, Gohan, even Vegeta can help you in your training too!" Goku assured his granddaughter. The messy haired saiyan then flew over to where Uub was waiting, "Ready?"

"Yes," the boy readily replied, excitement building in his chest.

"Nimbus!" the old call rang out, followed by a yellow cloud flying in from afar. The boy looked inquisitively at the cloud. "Get on," instructed Goku. The young human slowly climbed onto the cloud, unsure of every motion. Even once he was sitting on the fluffy transport, he half expected to fall through at any moment.

"Ok, lets go!" cried Earth's hero, and the two flew off, leaving the tournament to the other fighters. The young boy pointed the way to his village and the two fighters took off happily into the distance.

"That finishes the Tournament's first round! The second round will begin momentarily!" the announcer called as the tournament staff worked diligently to make the ring presentable for the next fight, "Who will work through the next fights to challenge the Champ, Mister Satan, for his title?" The crowd cheered.

* * *

Thanks for reading! I really enjoyed writing this chapter. Feel free to review, I like getting feedback. Have a great week!


	8. The Show Must Go On

A short human with medium length hair stood looking into the distance. _Leaving for another adventure, isn't that right ,Goku? _he thought as his red shirt and beige pants flowing in the breeze. Looking back over to his next opponent, Krillin sized the little girl up. _She is very young, but she is Gohan's daughter, I'll have to be on my guard._

The young girl in question was currently standing next to her father, one hand gripping his pant leg. She also looked out towards where her grandfather had just left, a tear still on her cheek. She soon wiped the tear off and smiled.

"Vegeta," began Goku's older son, "Are you planning on backing out now that dad is gone?"

"Of course not," retort the prince, "Kakarot is not my only goal as of now." The spikey hair warrior lowered his arms and smirked, "you far surpassed me back when we were fighting Buu, but I will beat you here, Gohan." The young man chuckled nervously in response.

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Called the announcer, getting everyone's attention, "The tournament leadership has decided that Goku has until his next match to return, or he will be disqualified." After a short pause for breath, the old man in a blazer continued, "in the meantime, we are ready for the next match! Can I get Pan and Krillin to come to the ring!" Krillin jump into the air, then super sped to the center of the ring, landing lightly on the new tile. Pan jumped into the air, did a front flip, then landed with her arms out at her sides. After the two fighters were in place the tournament official continued, "both these fighters won their first match with ease. How will these two fare against each other? We will know soon! Let the match Begin!"

Pan was the first to take a fighting stance, her smile still shining from her face. Her opponent smiled back as he took his own stance. "Sorry Gohan, I can't let her win," the midget joked, half to himself. Louder, the old martial artist continued, "So, Pan, how is your training going?"

"I work really hard every day, and daddy says I could be stronger than Grandpa someday!" The little girl exclaimed, her voice almost squeaking on 'someday'.

"That's awesome Pan!" Krillin responded sincerely, her youthful optimism nostalgic to the ex-monk, "well, I'm gonna start now. Are you ready?"

"Yup!" nodded the four-year-old girl.

_I should start slow, I don't want to take too much advantage of her inexperience,_ thought the short human as he charged his young opponent. He threw a right hook, but the girl caught it with her left hand. The midget then kicked Pan's side, but she was able to curl her arm in a block that only pushed her to the side a foot or so.

"My turn!" The happy girl returned, flying forward, foot first, into the old fighter's block. Twisting, she sent her other foot towards the martial artist's head. She only met another block, however. Grabbing the young girl's ankle, Krillin threw her into the tile below. The midget then flew into the sky, Pan quickly following when she hopped up from her crash.

Maintaining their distance, the old fighter fired an energy blast at the approaching youngster. The girl held out her hand and caught the incoming blast, canceling it out with her own. Out of the smoke appeared her adversary, landing a punch to her stomach. Saliva flew out of her mouth, but she prevented being pushed back by grabbing hold of the ex-monk's wrist. Flipping over his arm, she slammed both her heels onto the top of the surprised fighter's head.

The midget was sent down towards the ring. Landing easily, he chuckled to himself, "this little one's gonna give me a headache." Raising his voice he called to his attacker, "Good job, Pan!"

"Thanks!" smiled the little girl, flying back into action. She threw a right hook as she descended onto the standing martial artist. Krillin answered with an upward punch of his own. The two fists met, creating a small shock wave that pushed Krillin down a quarter-inch into the tile. Taking initiative, the child fighter resumed her downward advance, swinging a left at the midget's face. She swung through the image of her opponent, her real adversary appearing above her as the first image disappeared. Thinking quickly, Pan spun around and raised her guard just in time to block the incoming hammer strike. She was still sent into the broken tile, but a lot of the damage was mitigated.

"Very impressive, you are quick to take in your surroundings," Krillin complemented his young opponent. A wide grin on the young warrior's face, she hopped up out of the tile dust and jumped up at her floating adversary. Caught off guard, the little one's head jammed into the graying warrior's stomach. Almost by instinct, Krillin swung hard at the small figure, sending her flying. She skidded across the ring like a rag doll, stopping herself just short of the edge.

_Uh oh,_ thought the surprised warrior, _I didn't mean to hit her that hard._ "Sorry, Pan, I…" he began to explain, when the girl got up, tears welling up in her eyes.

The four-year-old girl had multiple scrapes on her limbs. "Wah!" she wailed, a white aura building up around her. After a moment of crying, she stopped, turned towards the one who had hit her, and stared as many daggers as a four year old girl could.

"Whoa!" The old fighter opened his eyes in astonishment, _she's on par with Frieza's third form!_ Suddenly taking this fight much more seriously, Krillin took a fighting stance. The girl shot at the taller warrior and began with a jab. The middle-aged fighter parried it, only to see a powerful kick coming for his head. The kick swung through air, Krillin's afterimage fading. The old martial artist swung from above the smaller fighter. His swing also went through thin air as Pan copied him. Each fighter took turns attacking, missing the other's after image, then dodging their opponent's attack with their own.

"This is incredible!" The announcer proclaimed, "The young Pan seems to be holding her own with this seasoned martial artist!" Through the cheers of the crowd and the other fighters, Gohan stood silently, a huge smile on his proud face.

Finally catching his opponent, as strong kick hit its mark on Pan's torso. The young fighter spun out of control, catching herself after bouncing once off the ring. Floating in the air for a moment to catch her breath, the girl realized her opponent was nowhere to be seen. Closing her eyes she felt out for his energy. At the last second she raised both her arms, blocking a two armed chop designed to hit the back of her head and knock her out.

Smiling, she opened her eyes, spun around, and sent an energy blast straight into Krillin's torso. The blast detonated on impact, singeing the older warrior's shirt. Through the smoke, the experienced martial artist flew forward, getting the drop on his opponent and punching her in the cheek. The girl slammed into the ring below with a crash.

"Pan has been knocked unconscious!" The announcer called, " I will start the count! One! Two! Three! Four! Five! Six! Wait!" The young girl had picked herself up, brushing off her red gi.

Krillin landed across from the child warrior, "You are very strong, especially for a little kid," the older warrior complimented, "but it's time to wrap this up." Pan just stood, a frown on her face, in a fighting stance. After waiting for a reply, the experienced martial artist dashed forward. The little girl twisted around the midget's first punch, dashing around to his back.

As she passed, Krillin chopped down, hitting her in the torso. The surprised girl landed hard on the ground, rolled away from her attacker, then jumped back towards him to re-enter combat. The midget released an explosive wave that carried Pan away from him. Doing a backflip, the girl landed a little way from the human.

"Fine," the young quarter-Saiyan exclaimed, "if I can't get to you, I'll do this." She pulled her hands to her side, "Ka, Me..."

"Oh," the human fighter raised his eyebrows, "I didn't know you knew this one." Smirking, he pulled his arms to his side as well, "Ka, Me.."

"Oh this is unexpected!" The announcer declared, "Krillin is known to have used the legendary Kamehameha technique, but to see Pan use it, as young as she is, is really extraordinary. I guess a four-year-old can't be ordinary and make it this far in the world tournament!"

"Ha, Me…" Both fighters said in unison. Sparks surrounded the two warriors, especially the smaller one. Simultaneously they squat down for a better stance, and yelled, "Ha!" Both fighters threw their hands forwards, two blue beams firing towards one another. The powerful energy waves collided in the middle of the two participants. Shockwaves rippled through the air around the collision point as it swelled with energy.

"Ha!" Yelled the young fighter after a moment of stalemate, her white aura sharpening with energy. Her energy wave began pushing the older martial artist's back.

Remaining silent, Krillin frowned slightly, energy pulsing through his body. Suddenly the energy struggle paused, then reversed. Pan found that she was being pushed back.

"I won't give up!" the little girl called, pushing everything she had into the beam. The progress towards her slowed, but it was not stopped. She pushed on as long as her energy held out, but soon her power floundered. Her little body couldn't keep this up. Her arms dropped and she braced for their combined Kamehameha to turn on her.

"Haa!" Realizing the situation, Krillin quickly ignited his aura. Powering up to full, he dashed around his beam, ahead of its collision with his opponent. He sent a quick kiai towards her, sending the exhausted fighter out of the ring onto the ground. Krillin then turned towards the oncoming combined beam. "Haa!" the ex-monk yelled as he hit the energy up into the air with both hands like a volleyball.

The crisis averted, the graying warrior let his power slip away as he turned and hopped down to where his small opponent was sitting in the grass. He held out his hand, "You did great!" the old fighter exclaimed, "it won't be long until you pass me. Just keep up the hard work!"

"Ok," the tired girl replied, a wide smile on her face. She took the outstretched hand and stood back up.

"Krillin wins by ring out!" announced the referee, "Give them a hand, folks, especially little Pan. She did great!"

"Pan! Pan!" chanted the crowd as the little girl's grin somehow grew wider and her eyes shone. Krillin picked her up and put her on his shoulder while the little one put both her arms in the air. After putting her back down on the ground, the little girl ran over to where her father was waiting, arms stretched out to receive the young child.

"Papa!" cried pan as the two embraced, "I tried real hard. Sorry I couldn't win." She wasn't crying, but her voice had a tinge of sadness to it.

"Nonsense," Gohan said encouragingly, "You did great! I am so proud of you! I love you!"

Another grin appeared on the young girl's face, "I love you too, Papa!"

The tall Saiyan turned to Krillin, "Thank you for giving her a good fight."

The midget scratched the back of his head, "are you kidding? She was much stronger than I expected. She is going to be a handful one day." Krillin was smiling as big as anyone's, "It was fun though, usually I'm the one who can barely keep up."

"Yeah, I know how you feel," Tien, listening from several feet away, put in, "but I have a feeling we will struggle to make it much farther."

"I know," replied the shorter warrior, "I haven't even been as disciplined in my training as you, Tien, but I will go as far as my power will take me."

"Well said," Tien grinned, "I will too." The two old friends bumped fights.

"Ok, ladies and gentlemen!" The announcer called for the attention of the arena, "We are ready for the next match!" Waiting for the cheering to die down, the middle aged man continued, "Can I have Gohan and Tien come to the ring?"

Gohan set down his daughter, who had been hanging around his neck during the intermission. The two warriors glanced at each other, flashing a smile. Simultaneously, they walked up to the ring, up the stairs, and stopped in the middle of the ring.

"These two fighters proved their strength in their last matches, but who will come out on top? Gohan with his immense strength? Or Tien with his grit and techniques? We'll find out soon! Let the match begin!" The cheering from the audience was deafening.

"Kaioken!" Began the bald warrior, igniting his red aura. He threw a punch towards his opponent's face. Catching it easily, Gohan grinned at the human. A quick punch to the gut sent the triclops reeling. Jumping back, Tien expanded his aura, "Times 2!" Dashing back towards his opponent, he dove for a sweeping kick. His attack stopped on the younger fighter's leg, not budging it.

Jumping back once again, Tien smirked, "Kaioken times 5!" Dashing forward faster than before, he swung for Gohan's gut. The Saiyan dodged to the side, spun in the air, and kicked his adversary in the side. Skidding to a halt, Tien turned to see the Saiyan had disappeared. Spinning around, he pushed off the ring feet first. Both feet slammed into the crossed arm block of the reappearing Gohan.

Pushing off the block, The bald martial artist jumped back down towards the ring, flipping over and landing gracefully. Gohan landed some ways away, a smile on his face.

"You haven't even begun to take this seriously, have you?" Tien grinned as he spoke.

"Hey, I didn't get a good warm up last match." The young man replied, "so give me a break."

Tien charged into battle once again, his kick landing on Gohan's arm. The black haired warrior responded with a kick upwards towards the triclops' chin. Tien did a backflip to avoid the hit, putting both hands forward and firing two energy blasts at near-point blank range. Gohan put up both arms in a block, then retaliated with a single blast of his own. His opponent jumped backwards with the attack, caught it, and negated it with his own energy.

"Kaioken times 10!" Tien shot forward again, landing both his fists into the Saiyan's stomach. Gohan recoiled in surprise, as his opponent whipped around him and kicked him into the tile of the ring. The bald fighter raised one hand into the air, electricity sparking up his arm as he charged an attack. "HA!" the older warrior yelled as he moved his arm towards his landing opponent and fired. The powerful blast detonated on it's target, creating a big cloud of smoke.

"Whoa! Folks, I don't know about you, but I don't know if anyone could survive that!" The annoncer commented as the crowd went silent, all eyes searching for the Saiyan in the cloud.

"Hmph," grunted the prince from the sidelines, "if Gohan would stop playing around, he could end this fight in a second."

As the smoke cleared, the tall Saiyan martial artist was revealed, his clothes not even singed, with a smirk on his face. "I'm not like most of you," He began as Tien landed not far from where Gohan stood, "I don't love fighting like you, but every once in a while I miss the blood rush and excitement of combat. Every once in a while a good fight is fun, and I think I had forgotten that. So thank you for humoring me, but I think it's time I raise the bar a little." A small energy surge surrounded the Saiyan. He made no expression, no sound, just a small gust of wind that radiated out from him.

"Then I will try to keep up," retorted Tien, "Kaioken Times 20! Ha!" His red aura darkened and expanded. He reeled as a fist appeared in his gut. A kick then landed in his back. The older fighter couldn't see a thing, he just felt the impact. _If I can't even sense him coming, how am I to counter?_ Landing on the ring, Tien jumped to the side, dodging his adversary's next strike. Then the triclops shifted backwards, seeing Gohan reappear with his foot buried in the tile that Tien had been standing on.

He had to keep predicting his opponent's moves just to stand a chance, Tien knew. Spinning and raising both arms in a block, the bald fighter grunted as his opponent's hammer strike collided with it. Focusing his energy with what little time he had, the triclops fires an eye beam from his third eye, but it passed harmlessly through his opponent's afterimage. A sweep kick took the old fighter off his feet. Flipping with the attack, tien stood on one hand, crossing his legs above him to block another kick by his opponent. The red wreathed fighter's free hand fired behind him, but the attack was deflected by the approaching Saiyan, who punched the upside-down warrior in the small of his back.

Tien was sent sprawling, _he's just too fast for me as I am right now._ Digging his fingers into the tile, the tall human was able to stop his flight out of the ring and land near the edge. "Ha!" cried the triclops, his aura beginning the color transition, "Super Kaioken!" Gohan walked towards his against-the-wall opponent. Suddenly both fighters disappeared from all but the strongest in the arena's view.

Sonic booms exploded all over the ring. As they continued, the booms happened higher and higher into the air. Tien found that he couldn't get anything though Gohan's guard. In one exchange, after the young Saiyan had blocked Tien's latest attempt to strike him, the triclops fired another third eye energy blast. His opponent easily raised a hand to block it, but then the human fighter pushed his other hand past the preoccupied Saiyan's remaining arm, into his chest. "Dodon Barrage!" yelled the older warrior, five small blasts digging into his opponent's skin. Gohan sent a small wave of energy that detonated the blasts on his skin.

The tall Saiyan delivered a powerful chop onto his opponent's exposed shoulder, pushing the latter almost back down onto the ring. The human hovered several feet above the ring, his blue aura coloring the air around him, holding his struck shoulder with his opposite hand.

_I knew this was going to be hard, but I hoped this form would help close the gap,_ he thought as he nursed his shoulder, _I guess not._

Gohan charged once again, a left hook landing on a crossed arm block from his opponent. Even with the block, Tien flew backwards. He twisted just in time to see Gohan swinging a kick that hit the human in his mid-section. A streak of blue shot down into the tile floor.

"Tien is down!" Announced the referee as the rubble cloud cleared and Tien was seen lying unconscious. "I will start the count," continued the official, "One! Two! Three! Four!" Tien slowly rose to his feet, covered in scrapes. "Tien is up once again, the match continues!" The man proclaimed.

"Rah!" Yelled the now standing human, "Super Kaioken!" reigniting the blue flame, Tien jumped into action. Flying straight at his target, Gohan took a defensive stance. "Four witches!" the old martial artist yelled just before impact, producing two extra arms very quickly. The Saiyan easily blocked the anticipated right cross, but the two overhead arms slammed down on the surprised fighter in a hammer strike.

Stunned for a moment, Gohan moved several feet down in the air. Recovering after a couple seconds the black haired Saiyan realized his opponent was upon him once again. Gohan caught two punches coming from above, but a left hook from the bald human got through, landing in the Saiyan's cheek. Gohan smiled through the attack, then grunted as a Dodon Barrage landed in his chest.

Jumping back, Tien paused, _Nothing I am doing is having any lasting effect of him, I may have to use it._

"It seems Tien may be running out of steam!" observed the tournament referee, the crowd roaring in the background.

Goten smirked, "Tien is an awesome fighter, but he is just simply outclassed in power by Gohan, thousands of times over. He will try with all he has, but it will be futile. I'm surprised he has lasted this long as it is."

"Gohan isn't taking this fight seriously," A deep voice from behind the teenage Saiyan made him turn. It was Piccolo, "Contrary to what he said, Gohan is still warming up. Tien may be able to surprise him however."

"What do you mean?" Trunks asked inquisitively as he turned to address the Namekian. Goten remained silent, wanting to hear the answer as well.

"Tien has a technique that allows him to do much more damage than his power would suggest," the Namekian explained, "I've only known him to do it on one occasion, but it was able to push around a foe many tens of times stronger than him."

"Only push him?" Criticized Goten, " and Gohan is much stronger than that."

"That is true," Piccolo frowned, "but he is not at full power yet."

Tien lowered himself to be well below his opponent. Gohan simply waited for the human's next attack. The triclops held out his two regular arms in front of him, his hands creating a triangle aimed at the floating warrior, and steeled himself for what was to come.

* * *

Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave a review, I enjoy getting them.

R: Much better way to motivate Uub.

A: Thank you, I thought so too. I always thought the way done in DBZ was silly, where it could have been a fun way to make Goku act out of character. Maybe even show some discomfit or uncertainty with it, as Uub showing his power was something Goku wanted, but didn't have an easy way of doing.


	9. Father vs Son

A young saiyan in a red gi and a blue undershirt hovered in midair, high in the sky. Below him, an older human hovered looking up at the former. The human wore no shirt and green pants. He had two extra arms sticking out from his shoulder blades, and his two standard arms were held in front and above him in a triangular shape.

"Ha!" yelled Tien as he collected energy for his next attack. Gohan, his opponent, hovered with his arms crossed. Tien focused on his adversary as the older fighter's blue aura raged around him. "Neo…" yelled the triclops as light flashed between his hands, "Tri Beam!" The sky became blinding with light. The audience had to look away. The energy attack quickly approached the flying saiyan, who raised his guard. The energy still hit like a freight train, knocking the underestimating saiyan clear back out of the arena, over an empty field.

"Now's my chance!" Yelled the human warrior, "Super Kaioken Level 2!" The blue aura grew around him and the bald martial artist charged. "Haa!" he yelled as he sped to where Gohan was flying to. He was still to slow. When Tien reached his knocked back adversary, the saiyan participant spun and caught the hammer strike intended for his back. The younger fighter didn't expect the second hammer from the more experienced warrior's extra arms, however. He was pushed down several yards.

"Whoa!" cried the announcer as the crowd regained sight, "Tien has knocked Gohan away from the arena! How will he follow up this incredible attack!"

"Time to finish this!" Responded the spiky haired saiyan, "Ha!" A white aura appeared around him.

"NOW!" exclaimed the strained triclops. _All I have to do is push him to the ground!_ Thought the human, veins bulging on his forehead. This time both sets of his hands came together, forming two triangles, "Tri Gatling!" he called out to the sky, "Ha!" One tri beam fired from one set of hands. The blast hit Gohan's raised guard, pushing him down a couple of inches. "Ha!" one fired from the other set of hands, flying down and hitting their target's shoulder. "Ha! Ha! Ha!" The blasts continued, alternating which hands were firing. Each one landed on their target, pushing him down ever so slightly, but never overwhelming him.

Gohan, to his credit, remained smiling throughout the ordeal. _This power is great!_ Thought the powerful saiyan, _Tien really can outperform what's expected of someone of his energy level._ Raising his battle power even more, Gohan began to push up through the blasts, relentlessly advancing on his opponent.

Tien spread out his hands suddenly "Maximum Barrage!" he called as all twenty digits fired a Dodon Ray. The yellow beams collided with Gohan's guard, stalling him a moment. A few beams even got past the saiyan's guard, landing in his stomach and face. The collisions stunned Gohan long enough for the shirtless fighter to bring his hands back together.

This time the triangles were lined up with each other. "Double…"trailed Tien's yell as his blue aura expanded further, "Tri Beam!" The first triangle fired the blast into the second, the blast gaining power and speed as it passed through the second triangle. Just returning his focus from the sting of the Dodon Rays to his opponent, Gohan barely realized what was happening when the blast collided with him. He was thrown towards the ground like a ragdoll. A large, curiously square, hole opened up in the ground from the attack. Gohan was flung into the hole.

_I have to stop this! _The younger fighter screamed in his head. Summoning all the energy he could in an instant he fired a kiai towards the ground, stopping his descent and catapulting him up towards his now exhausted opponent.

Tien's arms hung at his side. He lowered his Super Kaioken to the first level and prepared himself for checking if his opponent hit the ground in the hole the old martial artist had created. Suddenly the form of Gohan appeared in front of the triclops. Tien just barely registered the movements of his adversary, but there was no way for him to react in time. A knee lodged itself in the gut of the tired fighter. Blackness quickly enveloped the triclops' vision as he slipped from consciousness. _I guess it wasn't enough…_ was the last thing Tien thought as his consciousness faded.

Gohan caught the knocked out fighter. He flew over to the ring. "The fighters have returned!" exclaimed the announcer as he stopped from getting into his plane, "but Tien is unconscious! If Gohan just drops him in the ring, we can begin the countdown!"

"There's no need," Gohan responded as he dropped the bald fighter outside the ring. Tien hit the ground with a thud.

Stunned for a second, the announcer continued, "Gohan wins by ring out! What a fight!" The crowd cheered for their next quarter-finalist. The saiyan's smile returned as his power dissipated. He lowered himself to pick his defeated opponent up. Tien draped over his shoulder, the adult saiyan walked over to where the other fighters were watching.

"Daddy, you were awesome!" little Pan came running, colliding with her father's leg.

"Thanks," Gohan replied with a smile, rubbing the little girl's head. "Krillin," the fighter began, getting the old fighter's attention, "do we still have senzu beans?"

"Yup, Goku gave them to me before his fight with Uub," the midget replied. Gohan fed one of the beans to Tien, who woke up immediately afterwards.

"Thanks," Tien said as he stood up, "I thought I had you, haha."

"You almost did," smiled the half-saiyan, "If your last attack hadn't opened up a big hole in the ground, I would have certainly hit. I didn't know that attack could be so powerful."

"It's not only that," cut in the prince, everyone turning to hear him, "It's not just that you underestimated him, but you are still obviously out of practice, your fighting instincts are dull."

"Yeah, I need to sharpen them again, but it's been so peaceful for so long, all I do is watch pan and spar with my dad a little," Gohan scratched the back of his head.

"That's no excuse," retorted Vegeta with a scowl, "Tien is the better fighter by far, you just have the blessing of saiyan DNA." Gohan didn't respond, he just chuckled to himself and turned as the tournament official began speaking with his microphone.

"We are ready for the next fight! Can I get Vegeta and Trunks to come out onto the ring!" called the referee over the chatter of the crowd. The two saiyan warriors walked up the stairs onto the ring. Vegeta had his arms crossed and a smirk on his face, while his son walked with his arms at his side, looking much less confident, but determined. "Vegeta, a fighter who showed great strength in his last fight, is actually the father of Trunks, who fought hard in his last match against a powerful adversary."

Trunks looked up to where Lucent, his fiancee, was watching. She seemed as calm as she always was, but she had a big smile on her face. _She's not one to show it, but she is rooting me on._ A big smile appeared on the young fighter's face.

"Focus, son," commented Vegeta with a small smile, "there will be time to focus on her later." Trunks blushed, then took a fighting stance. His father took his signature stance.

"Haa!" yelled the son as he charged the older fighter. Just before contact, the lavender haired warrior opened his palm and fired an energy blast. Vegeta easily caught the attack with one hand, and turned to block his son's surprise attack with the other. A jab from the spiky haired saiyan connected with his opponent, sending the half-saiyan to land several yards back.

"AH!" yelled the young man, a white aura enveloping him. His brow furrowed, he flew back into combat. Vegeta smiled as his son renewed the assault. Trunks landed a jab into his father's gut, momentarily stunning the prince. Jumping on his advantage, the young fighter twisted and landed a kick into his opponent's cheek, sending the older saiyan flying.

Vegeta stuck out one hand, using it to vault off the ground in a flip. Landing on his feet, he smirked, "well done." The prince wiped the blood off his cheek, "It's my turn now." The saiyan disappeared. Trunks whipped around to see a fist fly into his stomach, causing the lavender haired warrior to cough up saliva. Next a foot landed in the young fighter's chin, knocking him up into the air. The half-saiyan's father then grabbed the suspended warrior by the boot and spun him around.

Regaining his senses quickly, the young man fired another energy blast, this one hitting true into his father's face. The collision forced the surprised fighter back a couple feet. Annoyed, Vegeta flew forward and swung down on his opponent with a hammer strike. The young saiyan blocked it with crossed arms, but the impact still sent tremors up his arms. Stunned, Trunks didn't realize until it was too late that his father was sweeping his feet out from under him.

Not letting up, the prince grabbed the boy's descending head and slammed it down towards the tiles below them. Trunks reacted in time, catching himself with one hand, then using the other to grab Vegeta's head and slam it into a tile, obliterating it.

Beginning to get irritated, the black haired saiyan grit his teeth through the impact. He grunted as a white aura surrounded him as well. Spinning, he grabbed his son by the boot and smashed him into the ring. The prince then threw his son into the air. Lifting both hands, Vegeta fired a powerful energy wave at the ascending form of his adversary.

"Ha!" yelled Trunks as lavender became yellow. The jagged golden aura surrounded the young man came just in time for him to hold Vegeta's blast at arm's length. Closing his fingers around the head of the blast, it detonated. A yellow streak flew through the smoke created by the detonation, snaked around the prince's guard and into his chest. The older fighter went flying, stopping just short of the stands.

"Whoa! This is Intense!" Exclaimed the announcer as the crowd collectively gasped to see Vegeta floating above a part of them.

"You'll have to do better than that," shot the prince as he flew back into the ring.

"Of course, but while you're still in your base form I have the advantage," grinned the young half-saiyan as he disappeared. He reappeared in front of Vegeta faster than the prince could react. Two fists landed in the older fighter's torso, one in his chest, one in his stomach. Both then fired an energy wave, carrying the elder saiyan away. "You couldn't handle my super saiyan form in your base when I was a kid, you certainly can't now," Trunks smirked as his father picked himself up off the ground.

"You know what?" asked Vegeta, his blue body suit torn in a couple of places, "you're right." The saiyan prince smiled, "Ha!" he yelled as his aura and hair copied the transformation of his son. The spiky haired saiyan immediately flew into action, held his arm out, elbow first, and shot like a missile at his opponent. Trunks held up his own elbow, and the two collided with each other. The fighters stopped on contact, each trying to push the other back. For several seconds they struggled, electricity firing out from where their two energies pushed against each other. The two fighters then disappeared from view, sonic booms exploding throughout the arena.

Trunks landed a punch on his father's block, then Vegeta twisted and kicked his son in the ribs. Jarred by the impact, the younger fighter flew backwards to get a reprieve. The spiky haired super saiyan suddenly flew above his adversary, and kicked him down towards the ring with both feet. The surprised fighter hit the ring hard, bounced up, spun to be back up on his feet, and pushed off the ground to fly directly at his attacker. Two fists landed in Vegeta's stomach, causing the prince to double over and cough up saliva. The old alien warrior quickly recovered and grabbed his son, who was still at the point of impact, by the waist. Lifting him over his own head, the saiyan prince flew quickly towards the arena and slammed him into the tile, burying him up to his waist in the rubble.

"This is brutal! Vegeta has got Trunks down!" the tournament referee announced to the cheering crowd, " I will begin the countdown!" Vegeta stepped back with a smirk on his face and his arms crossed as the countdown began, "One! Two! Three! Four! Fi…" In one move Trunks swung his feet forward and jumped up out of the rubble, his blond hair covered in dust and his capsule shirt torn significantly. "Trunks is up!" The official ended his interruption to allow the continuation of the match.

"I guess no more warm up," smirked the tattered saiyan. Taking off his torn shirt, the young man frowned in concentration. "HAA!" he yelled, curling his arms at his sides. His aura reignited and grew, his body and the ring shaking with power. After a moment longer, the boy's yell subsided and he lowered his arms. His aura had grown and the dust had been blown from his hair and body.

"Oh, your getting serious now, good," Vegeta grinned, then grunted as his aura reignited around him as well. Trunks was the first one to move, sending a kick at his father's head. The prince lifted both arms to intercept the incoming attack. The shockwave of the collision rocked the stands behind the prince. Trunks then flew around and above his opponent, landing a kick on the back of his head. Vegeta was sent into the tile, face first. The older warrior caught himself, however, and vaulted forward, landing some space away. Trunks was already on top of him.

Appearing behind Vegeta, the young fighter swung a right cross into the mid-turn prince's shoulder, sending the older fighter flying back. Putting his feet on the ground, Vegeta skidded to a stop on the other side of the ring. He then put up a cross block to stop an incoming hammer strike, pushing his feet into the tile a little. Spinning vertically, the prince landed a double kick into his son's stomach. The boy was pushed up into the air a few feet, and was then met by an incoming energy blast from his father. Batting it aside with some difficulty, Vegeta appeared behind it, fist first, flying at the distracted fighter. Fist met fist as two punches collided, sending shockwaves throughout the arena.

"Not bad, but you can do better," smirked the prince, grabbing his opponent's wrist with his free hand, and flinging him down into the ring. Trunks hit the ring in a crash.

The young super saiyan smiled, "I know." He jumped up from his prone position on the ring, and flew back up into the air. The two fighters exchanged blows, shockwaves firing in either direction. Trunks landed a left punch into his father's gut, stunning the latter. The boy then reached up and grabbed the prince by his head, bringing it down to smash in against his knee.

The blow sent waves of pain through Vegeta's nervous system. The spiky haired warrior floated in a daze after the attack, and Trunks continued his assault with a kick to his father's mid section, sending him flying. The boy then dashed below his rag doll opponent, punching him up farther into the air. Just as Vegeta was beginning to regain control of himself, his son appeared above him. The hammer strike from the young man hit true, and Vegeta found himself falling back down towards the ring. His body recoiled as it slammed into the tile floor.

Trunks held out both arms, palm open. "HA!" he yelled as he fired dozens of energy blasts. The blast spread out in the air, then converged as they found their way to the downed prince. The floored super saiyan cried out in pain as the blasts hit his arms, legs, torso, and head. Trunks smirked, crossed his arms, and slowly lowered himself onto the ring.

Vegeta picked himself up off the floor, blood flowing from multiple gashes and his bodysuit torn in multiple places. The prince grinned, "Well done. I guess it's time to lose the training wheels. HA!" The short saiyan pulled his arms to his side as his aura appeared once again, his power climbing as it did. The older saiyan smiled through clenched teeth. Trunks just frowned and took a fighting stance.

The two super saiyans stood, staring each other down for several moments. Then they rushed each other, locking arms. Vegeta quickly overpowered his son and forced him back. A punch to the gut and then a kick into the chest sent the young warrior flying. The boy spun around expecting, but not being able to block, Vegeta's incoming strike. A fist landed in his stomach, stopping and doubling over the young man. The saiyan prince then kicked him back onto the ring, landed on it himself, and dashed to where his son lay prone.

Trunks came out of his daze just in time to roll out of the way of his father's punch. The fist went through the tile the young man had previously been laying on. The saiyan prince then planted both hands on the tile, spun and kicked the still down saiyan across the ring. The boy pushed off the ring into the air to avoid a ring out. Vegeta followed.

"This is over!" Cried the saiyan prince as he dashed up to his son, preparing to smash him to the ground outside the ring. Trunks suddenly fired two energy beams out of his eyes, taking his father by surprise. "When did you…" Began the older martial artist in shock as he just barely dodged the attack.

"Piccolo taught me," smiled the young saiyan as he grabbed Vegeta's outstretched arm and threw him towards the ground. The shirtless warrior fired several kiais to ensure his father would hit the ground. The spiky haired super saiyan grit his teeth through the collisions and just barely stopped his fall short of the grass. Before his son could take advantage of his positioning, the saiyan prince flew back up to his son.

The older warrior's first punch was blocked by a raised knee. Vegeta then twisted to kick at his adversary's head. That too was blocked, this time with an arm. Thinking quickly, the saiyan prince then fired a ki blast point blank into his son's chest. A grunt of pain was the reply as Trunks flew backwards. The prince intercepted his opponent's flight path and kicked him down towards the ground. With the little control he had at the moment, the young saiyan redirected his descent to land in the ring with a crash.

The super saiyan youth stood back up and floated up to where Vegeta waited, "I don't think I can beat you, haha." The boy smiled, "but I'm sure gonna try!" He raised both hands to one side, at about shoulder height. He curled his fingers as he nestled one hand in the palm of the other. "Haa!" yelled the young saiyan as his aura expanded and contracted erratically.

Vegeta grinned, "so, that's how you want it, huh? Okay, come and get me!" He held up a single hand, thumb over his palm and all other fingers straight up.

A purple energy built up in the younger super saiyan's hands. "Galick Gun!" exclaimed the energy's holder as he threw his hands forward, firing the purple beam.

"Ha!" yelled Vegeta in response, firing his own, yellow, energy wave. The two beams collided above the center of the ring, swelling as energy was poured in from both sides. The prince smiled, "Your energy is impressive, Trunks. Ha!" the energy flowing from the saiyan prince increased, and the younger fighter saw his blast being pushed back.

"No!" called the half-saiyan youth, "HA!" The purple beam grew in size, but it only served to slow the yellow blast's advance. _This is it!_ Thought the boy, desperation creeping into his mind. After several more seconds, the boy's energy was overwhelmed, and the combined force turned on him and he was flung back. Vegeta willed the blast up towards space and Trunks barely rolled to one side to avoid going up with it.

The exhausted boy's hair returned to its lavender color as he fell towards the ground. Before he hit the ground Vegeta appeared and grabbed him by the neck. He then sped over to the ring and landed on the ring's edge, Trunks hanging over the side.

The audience gasped as the announcer exclaimed, "the fighters have returned to the ring, and it looks like Trunks is unconscious!"

Vegeta stood there for a second, holding his son by the neck. He was only holding it tightly enough to not let the younger saiyan fall. "You fought well, my son," he began, "I am proud of you." With a smile on the old saiyan's face, he let go, and the semi-conscious Trunks fell to the ground with a thud.

"Vegeta is the victor by ringout!" declared the tournament referee, "He will advance to the quarter-finals!" The crowd roared with applause.

The smile still on Vegeta's face, the saiyan prince powered down, hopped off the platform and picked up his son, draping him over his shoulder. "Hey, Krillin, you got another Senzu bean?"

As the short saiyan approached the even shorter human, the human smiled, "You sure seem to be in a good mood, Vegeta." The ex-monk chuckled a little, "yes we have plenty of Senzu beans."

The saiyan prince's smile faded quickly at the first remark, and he scowled as he put Trunks down on the ground by the short human, "Yeah, just give him the bean." Krillin chuckled a little at that.

Trunks swallowed the bean and quickly opened his eyes. He jumped up and looked at his father. "So I guess I lost, huh?"

"Yeah, but you were awesome!" the midget quickly put in.

"Thank you, Krillin," Trunks sincerely replied, but then looked at his father. After a moment Vegeta smiled once again and held out a fist. Trunks smiled too and quickly, a little too quickly, bumped fists with his father. The young man then looked out into the stands. He could see his mother waving and yelling praises at him, which made him blush a little in embarrassment. Then he saw who he was looking for, a young blond woman. She was smiling at him, but not jumping around as before. She stood, leaning over the railing a little. "Catch you guys later," Trunks said suddenly, and he began floating up to where his fiancee was waiting.

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Thank you for reading. Feel free to review, I always enjoy feedback. Sorry for the lateness of this chapter, It has been a busy week. I will still try to release the next one on time. Oh, one thing. The "Neo Tri Beam" is the version he used against Cell, if that's not clear to anyone. I checked the dub, and he doesn't say "Neo" but in the Japanese he adds "Shin" to the beginning, and "Neo Tri Beam" is how I've seen the attack translated.

R: Tri Beam is such a badass move.

A: Yes, yes it is. I hope you like the variations I put into the attack here.


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